SRINAGAR: The Community Information Centre (CIC) Operators from the Department of Rural Development & PR (J&K) are optimistic about positive changes in their longstanding concerns as the newly appointed Secretary to the Government Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary takes office.
In a press release issued here, the CIC Operators extended a warm welcome to the new Secretary, expressing hope for a resolution to their demands, which have lingered unaddressed for two decades.
“The operators, recruited in 2004 through a transparent process overseen by Deputy Commissioners, possess advanced qualifications such as MCA, MSc, and BE/B.Tech degrees. Despite their advanced qualifications, CIC Operators have been receiving a modest monthly salary of Rs 10,000 for the past two decades,” according to the press release.
The operators said in 2014, the J&K Cabinet made a significant decision to regularize them, recognizing their “invaluable” contributions. In 2016, the Rural Development Department created 172 Data Entry Operator positions, aligning with cabinet directives to regularize the services of CIC Operators under SRO-255.
In 2016 and 2017, the Finance Department’s Empowered Committee approved the regularization of all CIC Operators under SRO-255. The Advocate General of UT J&K and the Department of Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs UT J&K provided affirmative legal opinions in support of the CIC Operators.
“Despite enduring sky-high inflation, CIC Operators continue to receive a meagre monthly salary of Rs 10,000. Their numerous pleas for a salary hike remain unacknowledged,” they said.
CIC Operators are now urging the newly-appointed Secretary Dr Shahid Iqbal Choudhary to intervene and address their concerns based on merit and humanitarian principles. They believe that this intervention will alleviate their suffering and bring an end to the prolonged wait for regularization and salary enhancement.

KR Desk