RK News Service
Srinagar, May 18: CPI(M) leader and Kulgam MLA Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami on Monday demanded the release of pending payments to contractors of the Public Health Engineering (PHE)–Jal Shakti department.
In a statement, Tarigami said that these contractors have been staging a protest at the Chief Engineer’s Complex in Rajbagh, Srinagar, for the past few days over delayed dues under the Jal Jeevan Mission and related rural water supply works.
Withholding payments is affecting on-ground implementation, as several projects are at a standstill and ongoing schemes are facing disruptions due to pending bills not being cleared.
“What is lawfully due to them must be released,” he said. “The works executed by these contractors, many of which are still in the middle phase, must be completed, and the department must sit with them and ensure a proper redressal mechanism so that normal work resumes without further delay.”