Balochistan Government Employees Initiate Protest for Allowances
Protest Announcement by Balochistan Grand Alliance
Quetta, Dec 29: The Grand Alliance representing government employees in Balochistan declared a pen-down strike on Monday to advocate for their demands, which include the payment of a Disparity Reduction Allowance, as reported by local media.
Ali Asghar Bangulzai, the General Secretary of the Balochistan Grand Alliance, indicated that the protest has escalated to its second phase due to the "government's negligence and inefficiency," according to a leading daily.
He mentioned that organizations associated with the Balochistan Grand Alliance will commence a pen-down strike on Monday, followed by a complete shutdown of all government offices in the province on December 30 and 31.
Bangulzai confirmed that emergency services within the health department will continue to function during the protest.
In a related incident earlier in October, security personnel in Kalat protested against the Balochistan government's decision to merge the Levies Force with the police department, as reported by local media.
Following the provincial government's notification regarding the merger, Levies personnel organized protests throughout Balochistan. A rally in Kalat began at the Levies Headquarters and traversed key areas including Shahi Bazaar, Hospital Road, Harboi Road, and Darbar Road before returning to the headquarters, as detailed by The Balochistan Post.
Protesters, holding placards opposing the merger, voiced their discontent with the integration of the Levies Force into the police.
During the rally, Levies officers emphasized the force's 142-year legacy in maintaining law and order in Balochistan, highlighting the sacrifices made by many members in the line of duty.
They cautioned that previous attempts to merge the forces had failed and warned that repeating this action would likely lead to the same outcome.
The speakers urged the Balochistan government to adhere to the High Court's stay order regarding the merger and to retract the recent notification.
According to an official announcement made on October 16, the Balochistan government, with approval from the provincial cabinet, merged the provincial and federal levies forces with the police across six of the seven administrative divisions in the province, designating these areas as A-Areas.
The six divisions affected by the merger include Quetta, Rakhshan, Kalat, Makran, Zhob, and Nasirabad, while the Levies force in the Sibi division, which encompasses Sibi, Kohlu, Dera Bugti, Harnai, and Ziarat districts, remains separate from the Balochistan police.