Damania, Sena demand relief for employees of Cambata Aviation

Social activist Anjali Damania on Monday demanded immediate payment of salary and other dues of the employees of Cambata Aviation, the ground-handling agency which has ceased operations in Mumbai and Delhi.

Shiv Sena too came out in support of company employees.

Last week Damania had met Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and sought his intervention to ensure that employees were paid their salaries, pending since February last year.

According to her, over 1,200 workers of Cambata Aviation are awaiting settlement of their dues.

Mumbai suburban district collector has filed a first information report against Cambata Aviation and Bird Worldwide Flight Service for allegedly refusing to cooperate with government officials who were confiscating it equipment on court orders.

Addressing a joint press conference with Shiv Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe, on Monday, Damania said four unions led by leaders of various parties had failed to provide justice to workers.

Gorhe said that Shiv Sena was committed to fight for justice to the workers. Uddhav Thackeray was closely monitoring the developments and “we are going to extend all support to the workers who lost their jobs,” Gorhe said. 

She declined to comment on Damania’s claim that the union led by Sena MP Vinayak Raut too had failed to help workers.

Damania said that 316 pieces of equipment out of 852 had been seized and they should be sold immediately; investment made by Cambata Aviation in a Delhi company be divested, and workers should be compensated from these proceeds.

State Labour Minister Sambhaji Patil Nilangekar, who initiated legal action leading to seizure of equipment of the company, had said earlier the government has zero tolerance for companies flouting the labour laws.