After protests, Maharashtra govt agrees to data entry operators’ demands

“We have now fixed the issue of timely wages and the payments will be made on time through RTGS. We have reduced the human intervention in it. They also raised the issue about task confirmation which we have also resolved by introducing the performance invoice system,” said Aseem Gupta, secretary of the rural development department.

Gupta further said that the department had assigned additional government services to them to increase their honorarium and they would also be entitled to get government holidays.

There are a total of 23,500 data entry operators across the 27,000 gram panchayats in the state. The data entry operators play an important role in e-governance at the village level. Those who work at the village level Aple Sarkar Seva Kendras are entrusted with the job of digitising government documents, improving online citizen services, issuing 27 certificates. They also undertake implementation of schemes like crop insurance, farm loan waiver and others.

The data entry operators were on strike and fast-unto-death protest in last month to seek the attention of the government to resolve their issues. The union had decided to hold a protest at Azad Maidan on Wednesday, but it was cancelled after the state government agreed to some of their demands. “We are satisfied with the government’s agreeing to our demands. They have also reinstated 872 data entry operators as well but we will continue to fight for the remaining ones. We are the true foot-soldiers of a digital Maharashtra and will continue to do the work,” said Siddheshwar Munde, president of the state data entry operators’ union.