ROURKELA: Their sustained fight for pending dues bore fruit with the management of the defunct refractory plant Orind, on Saturday, paying a month’s wages to all its 761 employees. The company, now Shaswat International Ltd, paid over Rs 59 lakh to the staff. The development saw Sundargarh district administration heave a sigh of relief as failure on the part of the management would have further aggravated the situation. Sources said Orind’s authorised representative SK Bal arrived with the cash at the District Labour Office for payment as instructed by the administration. The amount was paid for September 2010. District Labour Officer (DLO) UK Jena confirmed the payment saying the management had committed to pay the rest of outstanding salaries of 13 months in quick phases. On Friday on the direction of District Collector Rupa Roshan Sahu, the DLO convened an emergency meeting to ensure nothing goes wrong. Hours before, employees became restive and started talking tough as the management offered payment of around Rs 31 lakh. Meanwhile, the sit-in near the labour office on Saturday entered 224th day. Employees are also on agitation in front of the plant at Lathikata. The agitators spearheaded by Birmitrapur MLA George Tirkey in October had rattled the administration by blocking NH-23 for days at a stretch and fasting in custody. George said the agitation would continue as they don’t believe the management or the government, adding they want early payment of all outstanding dues of the employees and restoration of production.
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