Hardayal Library stares at crisis as almost 80% of its workers on strike over pending salaries

New Delhi: The Hardayal Municipal Public Library in Chandni Chowk has not received grants for more than two years and the management is struggling to keep the place open, with almost 80 per cent of its workers on strike over delayed salaries.

In an MCD House Session in August, a proposal had been passed to form a special Management Committee of 11 people to clear all pending salaries of the library employees within a month, but the Committee has yet to even be formed as the second week of October rolls in, with the employers on their 31st month without pay.

“We have our families to run, our children’s schooling to take care of and the bills keep on coming but we cannot pay anything since we have not seen our salaries for over two years. We are not asking for something extreme, we just want the wages for the work we have been doing,” said Rajneesh, one of the electricians who was on strike.

They were forced to take the matter to court in May 2022, but have not received any solution since the date of hearing keeps getting postponed. The upcoming date is expected to be October 18, but they have little hope of it being fruitful.

Some of the workers met the Mayor on Friday and were told that there was a technical issue in the formation of the Management Committee but it will soon be constituted. Others went to meet the Member of Delhi Legislative Assembly, Durgesh Pathak who claimed that the file had been processed from his end.

Frustrated, the workers plan to visit both Pathak and MCD Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti for a solution before the Mayor leaves on an international visit.

The library itself is owed almost Rs 11 crore in grants, since the amount remains unpaid for the financial years of 2022-2023, and 2023-2024, along with some dues from the previous financial year. So far, the library has been surviving through loans, the employees’ own contributions and their PF money which they were forced to utilise.

Now, the library is functioning without electricity, for which a Rs 4.5 lakh bill is pending for a month, along with no running water and other facilities which have affected the members and in turn, they have written letters to PGRC, MCD Commissioner, Deputy Director and Mayor repeatedly for a solution.

“There are many students like us who are aspirants of UPSC, SSC and other competitive exams but with no electricity supply, it is extremely hard for us to study or prepare for online exams on the library computers. Students use their mobiles as flashlights to study in the evening, or bring an emergency light,” said Sunny, one of the library members.

With no running water, they are also forced to walk to the nearest Metro station to use washrooms and drinking water.