Kathmandu, May 19: Ayurveda-to-FMCG major Dabur has rammed down the shutters of its joint venture in Nepal, refusing to buckle under the extortion threats of the Maoist rebels.
Nearly 200 rebels stormed inside the premises of Dabur Nepal, located in Simra in south central Nepal, last evening. After mobilising the workers, the rebels demanded that the jobs of the contract workers be regularised at a minimum monthly wage of Rs 5,000. They also demanded an unspecified sum as donation from the management.
Soon after, the management decided to shut down the plant indefinitely.
The Maoist-affiliated trade union, All Nepal Trade Union Federation (ANTUF), on May 15 issued a 22-point charter of demands to all the units in the Bara-Parsa-Birgunj industrial belt.
They demanded scrapping of the labour contract system, payment of a minimum monthly wage of Rs 5,000 and provisions of housing, medicare and education facilities to the workers and their families. The union warned of dire consequences if its demands were not met within a week.
The rebels then forced the closure of several factories, including those of Jagadamba Steel, Triveni Group and Star Cements.
In response to the Maoist campaign, the Birgunj Chamber of Commerce and Industries (BCCI) today issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the rebels and ANTUF. They asked them to sit for a dialogue and stop intimidatory tactics.
At a news conference in Birgunj town, BCCI threatened to close down all the 500 units in the region if the ANTUF did not come for talks.
BCCI said it would guarantee minimum wages and sought ANTUF’S help in running the units at a time when Nepal was changing into a republic from a monarchy. The chamber alleged the Maoists were terrorising the industrialists with their extortions and threats to employ their cadres.
BCCI vice-chairman Sushil Mittal accused the Maoists of disrupting production by organising meetings and provoking workers to attack industrialists and managers.
S.P. Malhotra, senior general manager of Dabur Nepal, said the Maoists forcefully organised a mass meeting inside the factory.
ANTUF secretary Rajan Timilsina said Dabur Nepal wilfully breached contract norms to exploit workers and restrict their movements inside the factory.
