Daily Wage Workers Hit Streets In Kashmir Demanding Job Regularisation
Police foiled the protesting workers near the official headquarters of the ruling National Conference (NC).
Published : February 16, 2026 at 3:16 PM IST
Srinagar: Hundreds of daily wage workers took to the streets in Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, to protest the government’s lack of transparency regarding the proposed policy for their regularisation. This marks the first big protest against the elected government in the region.
The protesting workers attempted to assemble near the official headquarters of the ruling National Conference (NC) but were blocked by police, compelling them to protest near the All India Radio (AIR) headquarters, located adjacent to the NC office.
This was the first major protest against the elected government since it took office in October 2024 after delayed elections following the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019. Earlier, it was a daily occurrence in the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, but they disappeared after the Centre removed the region’s special status and bifurcated it into two union territories.
The daily wage workers are protesting for their regularisation and reminding the ruling party of its poll manifesto promise that “it will formulate a policy for regularisation in a time-bound manner” for paramedical staff in Associated Hospitals of Government Medical College (GMC), casual labourers, daily wagers, CIC operators, contractual employees, home guards, Rehbar-e-Khel and other categories of temporary employees.
The protest held today was sparked after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah presented the budget in the ongoing Jammu Legislative Assembly session. In his speech, he acknowledged the workers’ public service contributions but did not provide a timeline for addressing their long-awaited demands for regularisation.
In his first budget speech in 2025 to the assembly in Jammu, Omar announced the formation of a high-level committee of bureaucrats to develop a roadmap for the regularisation of over 61,000 daily wagers, ad hoc workers, and casual labourers in the union territory.
Later, a committee headed by the UT’s Chief Secretary Atal Dullo and comprising the Additional Chief Secretary in the CM’s office Dheeraj Gupta, the Finance Secretary, and the secretaries of the General Administration Department and Law Department was set up.
“The committee will be working out a framework on the total numbers of daily wagers, the financial aspect and the legal aspect, and the report will be submitted within six months. I hope in the next budget a policy will be announced for them,” the CM had said.
Sajad Parray, the president of the Daily Wagers Union in Jammu and Kashmir, said the chief minister presented the budget and made his speech, but did not table the policy which the bureaucratic committee had framed.
“The CM said that his government will begin regularisation of daily wagers from this year (from the budget session), but he didn't state the timeline and what the committee has recommended in the policy,” Parray said.
Parray said that multiple government departments have appointed daily wagers from decades ago who are doing regular departmental work and are paid daily wages, but not in accordance with the government-fixed minimum wage policy. “We are paid Rs 300 per day on working days. These wages are not paid regularly and on time. Until the government regularises us, it should pay us as per the Minimum Wages Act,” he said.
“But our fate remains locked in committees and empty promises made by every elected government,” he said, referring to the four committees set up by governments since 2009.
The first committee for the regularisation of the daily wagers was formed in 2009 by the National Conference and Congress government (2008-2014), when Omar was the chief minister. The second committee was formed by then-Governor NN Vohra when the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir was under President's rule for four months after the death of former chief minister and Peoples Democratic Party founder Mufti Mohammad Sayeed in January 2016.
The third committee was formed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) governments in 2016 when Mehbooba Mufti took over as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir after her father’s demise.
The CM Omar, in his budget speech, promised that his government is committed to finding just and humane solutions to the public service. “Based on the recommendations of the committee, a structured and phased roadmap for regularisation will be announced in the coming period. Our objective is to ensure that those who have devoted the prime years of their lives to public service are given dignity, security and a stable future within the framework of law and fiscal responsibility,” he said.
“Each committed to recommended steps for our regularisation, but no government implemented them. Our fate is buried in reports of these committees and the empty promises of every government,” said Irshad Ahmad, a daily wager working in the Jal Shakti department for the last 20 years.
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