Guwahati: The ongoing sit-in protest by the ONGC Purbanchal Employees’ Association (OPEA) at the ONGC Assam Asset headquarters in Nazira, Sivasagar district, has entered its second week, with the union standing firm on nine key demands.
Despite the growing unrest, the company’s day-to-day operations remain unaffected for now, according to the union.
The agitation began with employees wearing black badges and escalated to a full-fledged sit-in on May 21.
The union is calling for the immediate resumption of a halted recruitment process, the restoration of overtime allowances, and the regularisation of long-serving temporary staff, among other demands.
OPEA General Secretary Sanjeeb Boruah expressed deep concern over the continued suspension of recruitment, alleging that ONGC has thousands of vacancies across its Assam units but has not conducted any new hiring since 2023.
He pointed out that nearly 300 regular posts were sanctioned in 2022 for ONGC operations in Nazira, Jorhat, and Silchar, but the recruitment drive was inexplicably shelved.
According to Boruah, the company’s increasing reliance on outsourcing is depriving local youth of essential employment opportunities, undermining the public sector unit’s responsibility to promote regional development.
Boruah also recalled that following the announcement of their agitation in April, a team from ONGC headquarters visited Assam on April 29 to engage in dialogue.
However, no breakthrough was achieved. While ONGC officials have refrained from commenting publicly, describing the issue as an internal matter between the union and management, the lack of resolution has only intensified frustration among employees.
The union has warned that if their demands continue to be ignored, they will escalate the protest with a hunger strike, which may be followed by a tool-down strike.
A formal notice for the hunger strike has already been issued to the company.
Among the union’s most urgent concerns is the sudden discontinuation of the long-standing three-hour overtime allowance from February 2025, a move they say was made without prior consultation or notice.
The withdrawal of this benefit, in place since 1991, has affected the livelihoods of over 1,000 workers and their families, with the union calling the decision abrupt, unjustified, and damaging to employee morale.
OPEA has also reiterated demands for the regularisation of tenure-based field operators and paramedical staff, many of whom have served ONGC for more than two decades.
Despite repeated negotiations and commitments from management, their status remains unchanged.
The union argues that continued contractual uncertainty for these frontline workers reflects poorly on the organisation’s values and its recognition of dedicated service.
Concerns over worker safety have also surfaced, with the union highlighting the persistent unavailability of essential personal protective equipment, including safety shoes, coveralls, and gloves.
These deficiencies, they claim, compromise the safety and wellbeing of employees working in hazardous field conditions.
Despite raising these issues repeatedly, the union alleges that the management has failed to take corrective measures.
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The protest notice further accuses ONGC of failing to deliver on several long-standing commitments, such as the delayed upgradation of Class IV fire personnel, non-payment of field duty expenditure to employees of the Central Workshop, the rising trend of privatisation and outsourcing, and the discontinuation of certain medical benefits.
With the sit-in showing no signs of abating, and with no formal response from the management, tensions continue to build.
The employees’ union has made it clear that it will intensify its agitation unless a concrete and timely resolution is achieved.
