Telangana: Salaries kept on hold for suspended AEOs, stand-off continues

The AEOs across the State participated in the Rythu Nestham program, squatting on the ground in protest on Tuesday. They have warned of mass leave if the unjust suspensions were not revoked by Wednesday

Hyderabad: The ongoing protests in the Agriculture Department show no signs of abating as conflicts between agricultural extension officers (AEOs) and senior officials over the Digital Crop Survey remain unresolved.

The suspension of AEOs has further fuelled the fire, with accusations of dual standards by the higher authorities. Despite assurances to lift the suspensions, the salaries and allowances for this month have been withheld, aggravating the AEOs even more.

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The AEOs across the State participated in the Rythu Nestham program, squatting on the ground in protest on Tuesday. They have warned of mass leave if the unjust suspensions were not revoked by Wednesday.

In view of the assurances given to them, the AEOs have been conducting the Digital Crop Survey for the last four days. But the senior officials continued harassing the suspended AEOs by not fulfilling the promises made during the discussions.

A separate salary bill was prepared for the AEOs put under suspension and this month’s salaries and allowances were withheld citing administrative reasons.

This has been condemned by AEOs statewide, who continue to implement all government schemes successfully despite lacking basic amenities at the field level, maintenance funds for Rythu Vedikas, and support staff like attendants and village agriculture assistants.

The AEOs have emphasized that they are not against the Digital Crop Survey but insist that it should be conducted as per the guidelines issued by the Centre.

They noted that in no other State do female AEOs conduct field-level crop surveys, and they demand that the survey be conducted by private agencies engaging male staff for a period of 45 days, following the methods adopted in other states.

The AEOs requested the government to revoke suspension orders by Wednesday. They also demanded that full salaries and allowances be paid for the month to the suspended AEOs.

The AEOs urged the senior officials to give up their vindictive actions and create a conducive environment for the peaceful resolution of issues through discussions.

Raj Kumar Badawat, president of the AEO State Ad Hoc Committee, highlighted the need for a peaceful environment for resolving disputes between AEOs and senior officials through dialogue.