KATHMANDU, Oct 10: The work of the municipalities has come to a standstill after civil servants working at the local level protested against the Federal Civil Service Act, which is being brought by the government. The civil servants protested saying that the government had discriminated against the local level employees through the Act.
When the work of the service users coming to the municipalities has stopped, it has affected programs including development and awareness. Birkha Bahadur KC, a service seeker who came to Khajura Rural Municipality, said that the government has created an environment where the employees have to protest. Municipalities have stopped all other essential services and the employees are on a strike. They have been protesting in the municipal court all day with black bands around their arms.
Municipal employees across the country are protesting demanding 11 points, including the issuance of the Unified Civil Service Act instead of the Federal Civil Service Act. They have demanded that the post of the chief administrative officer of the local body should be a local service, the local level employees should also be included in the definition of civil service and the 753 local level employees should be transferred to a scientifically predictable cycle system without consent.
“There should be proper management of adjustment staff (following directives of the Supreme Court). Provision should be made for equal moral development of all three levels of employees. Employee welfare funds should be made mandatory for the employees working at the local government, the employees have demanded, concessions should be provided to the local service employees in the service facilities received from the civil hospital. There should be no age limit and service period should be added to all the three levels of advertisement for the employees who are in service at any level. Trade union rights should be granted to local service employees. Provision should be made for temporary and contract employees.”
Pradeep Sunar, accounting officer of Khajura Rural Municipality, said that the state has discriminated against civil servants of the local government as compared to the union and the state government. "Union and state employees are called civil servants only," he said. According to him, in the federal civil service act that the government is going to introduce, the way of development of local government civil servants has also been blocked. All remaining local bodies employees are on strike.