SHILLONG: Cook-cum-helpers under the Union of Cook Cum Helpers PM Poshan, Meghalaya, have met with Rajya Sabha MP James P.K. Sangma to press for a significant wage hike, demanding that he raise the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Education Minister Pralhad Joshi.
Union advisor Khroo L. Pariat said the cooks are seeking an increase in the central share of their monthly honorarium from ₹900 to ₹9,000, citing the impossibility of surviving on the current amount.
James Sangma assured the delegation he would soon travel to New Delhi to meet with the Union Education and Finance Ministers, acknowledging the urgent need to revise cooks’ remuneration not only in Meghalaya but across the Northeast.
Pariat clarified that the demand is not intended as an agitation against the government, but is necessary as cooks work up to seven hours a day and are required to provide daily photographic proof of their work.
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He emphasized that the role is no longer a voluntary service.
The union has announced that cooks will stop preparing mid-day meals from September 1 unless they receive a clear response from the Chief Minister or the Government of India.
Pariat appealed to headteachers and school management committees across the state and the Northeast to support their movement for the benefit of students.
The cooks remain hopeful of a positive outcome following previous discussions with State Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui and former Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
(4FrontMedia news)
