Jharkhand Chief Minister has refused to give permission for recruiting workers by the Border Roads Organization for infrastructure development projects near China border in Ladakh. BRO was scheduled to hold a recruitment drive in Dumka in the Santhal Pargana Division to hire construction workers. The Jharkhand government had earlier approved the request of Border Roads Organization (BRO) but later they revoked the decision citing the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic infection as the reason.
As per reports, the Hemant Soren government had approved a request of BRO and had granted permission to hold a recruitment drive in the district for the road construction work in Ladakh. Following the approval, a team from the central forces was sent to conduct the drive. But on May 29, the administration wrote a letter to Director of BRO’s Vijayak Pariyojana, Saurabh Bhatnagar, and mentioned that they cannot allow the forces to conduct a recruitment drive due to the rapidly expanding novel coronavirus infection.
As per the Times of India report, the letter reads, “Under the circumstances of Coronavirus pandemic and possibility of lockdown extension, the permit issued by this office is immediately withdrawn.”
An official from BRO, who had come to Dumka for the recruitment drive said, “Our team comprising senior officials and medical staff came here after consent from the Dumka district administration. We had plans to recruit around 11,000 people for the road works along the China borders.”
Earlier, the Centre had asked for 11 special trains to ferry construction workers from Jharkhand to Jammu and Chandigarh from where they were to be taken for road construction in Ladakh close to China Border where the stand-off situation between both the countries has occurred.
India has accelerated road and bridge construction projects along the LAC, and officials had said that they want to make best use of the available period suitable for construction at the high altitude places. Now the refusal of the Jharkhand govt means that BRO will have source workers from some other states to continue the ambitious construction projects along the border.
