‘Cannot survive at this salary’: In Lucknow, anger from women working for Dial 112 spills to streets

Speaking to The Indian Express on Thursday afternoon at the protest site, Priya Tewari (26), who has an MSc in Mathematics from Purvanchal University, said: “We have been working at the same salary of Rs 11,400 for five years. We demand that our salaries be increased to Rs 18,000. When we started the protest, officials at our office shut outside access and even locked the toilets, saying we should protest without such facilities.”

The women say that earlier this week, when they started marching peacefully from their office on Shaheed Path to the Chief Minister’s residence, they were assaulted by police personnel. (Express Photo: Vishal Shrivastava)

Tewari, who is from Azamgarh, is the sole breadwinner for her family of four. Her father died some years ago. “I have to send money home, and live here on rent. My two younger sisters, aged 22 and 16, depend on my salary for their school and college fees.”

The workers, during their nine-hour shifts, handle distress calls from across Uttar Pradesh. Their job entails getting details of the emergency – from road accidents to crimes against women to harassment – and relaying that information to Dial 112 vehicles with police personnel posted at different locations across the state. On an average, a Communication Officer handles around 600 calls a day. During festivals, the frequency increases. The state has around 850 such employees, including 750 in Lucknow, 50 in Prayagraj and 50 in Ghaziabad.

“The contract company which had the tender for our jobs changed this month. The new private company didn’t clarify if our jobs were secure. Plus, they said our salary will remain the same. We can’t manage with Rs 11,400 a month,” she said.

Another Communication Officer, Neha Pal (25), from Rae Bareli district, has a Masters in Economics from Feroze Gandhi College. She said the Rs 11,400 doesn’t last more than 15 days.

“I have been working here for four years at the same salary. I manage two houses – one here and one back home. Inflation is so high – a gas cylinder costs a tenth of my salary. I also have to send money for my mother’s treatment. My elder brother is looking for a job, and my father is unemployed. Since the pandemic, the situation has been worse. I have to pay Rs 3,500 for just a single room,” she said. “Only we know how we survive the last 15 days every month. We have to go hungry on multiple nights.”

DCP (Lucknow) Vineet Jaiswal, however, said no force was used on the protesters. (Express Photo: Vishal Shrivastava)

“I would like to tell you one thing – I couldn’t eat properly for three days because I had no money. When I went to my office on the fourth day, I ate because my colleagues gave me food. Despite inflation going up, our salaries are the same… I haven’t even bought diyas (lamps) for myself here or for my house in Rae Bareli,” she said.

Rinki Yadav (26) suffered injuries on her left leg during the alleged lathi charge on the protesting women on Tuesday. With a bandage on her leg, she sat at the protest site and said, “Police personnel hit me on the leg and hands. I have multiple injuries. This happened on Monday.”

DCP (Lucknow) Vineet Jaiswal, however, said no force was used on the protesters.

On Wednesday, Lucknow Police had registered an FIR against the protesting women on charges of rioting. On Tuesday, when the women were marching to the Chief Minister’s residence, police dispersed them, saying orders under section 144 of the CrPC were in place in the state capital.

The FIR on Wednesday was lodged against five named and 150 unidentified women under IPC sections 147 (rioting), 283 (danger or obstruction), 341 (wrongful restraint), and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant).

Opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal, have extended support to the protest.  (Express Photo: Vishal Shrivastava)

Contacted by The Indian Express on Thursday evening, Superintendent of Police (Dial 112) Sushil Kumar Shukla said that a discussion with the protesting workers was held on Wednesday evening for three hours. “Some issues were being resolved but no conclusion could be reached. Their main issue is an increase in salary. We will find a middle ground and resolve the issues after more discussions. The talks on Wednesday were positive,” said Shukla.

Opposition parties, including the Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Lok Dal, have extended support to the protest.

Asked how the work of Emergency service is being run with so many women being out in protest, Shukla said, “The new company that has got the tender has hired some new women and there are some female constables who were already trained. So, the work is being handled.”

However, a protester said, “It is a technical job and there are so many calls. It is not easy to replace us with new people.”