Hyderabad: Contractors have staged a flash protest at the office chambers of Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka in the Secretariat, demanding the immediate clearance of their pending bills.
More than 70 contractors reached Finance Minister Bhatti’s office chambers during visiting hours in the evening and waited to meet him.
Alerted by the large crowd, Secretariat security forces rushed to the spot and instructed the agitated contractors to leave the area. The contractors, who said they were facing severe financial difficulties due to the delay in the release of funds, were reluctant to leave until their grievances were addressed. They stated that their bills had been pending for the last three years and that the government was indifferent to their demand.
This marks the second time contractors have entered the restricted zone of the Deputy Chief Minister’s chambers and staged a protest recently. Following the incident, the Secretariat security wing issued instructions to authorities to immediately stop issuing passes to visitors to the finance minister’s office. Additional restrictions are expected to be imposed to prevent visitors from entering the chambers on the second floor without prior permission.
