Editor,

I would like to address the chief minister through this letter:

Respected young and dynamic CM sir, you notice every tiny thing happening in the state. You pour good wishes and appreciation on every achievement, from sportspersons bringing glory to Arunachal, to UPSC/APSC toppers making us proud. Your words reach every corner, and your recognition lifts thousands of hearts.

But sir, that happiness dies the moment we junior engineers look in the mirror. We remain unrecognised and unreachable.

For 15-23 years, JEs of Arunachal Pradesh have given our youth, sweat, and service to this state. Roads don’t build themselves. Water doesn’t reach villages by magic. Hospitals and schools don’t stand up alone. We build them. We maintain them. We are the backbone of every ‘development’ you inaugurate with garlands and headlines.

And what did we get in return? Stagnation. Silence. Injustice.

In just 15 years, APSC-appointed GA officers receive 2-3 formations and promotions. Engineering wings get one promotion and are already preparing for the next. Files move. Careers grow. Families breathe easy.

For junior engineers? The file never moves. The post never changes. The pay scale stays frozen. Fifteen years becomes 20 years. 23 years. Many of us will retire as the same JE we joined as. This is not delay. This is discrimination.

And here lies the biggest betrayal: As per recruitment rules and Government of India’s ACP/MACP scheme, every government employee is entitled to time-bound promotion every 8-10 years. That is the rule. That is the promise written in black and white.

If the rule applies to ‘every’ government employee, then why does it stop at the JE’s desk? Are we not government employees? Or has the RR been rewritten only for us?

Sir, we are exhausted. We are broken. We have begged for 23 years. Now we are demanding.

We do not want sympathy. We do not want empty praise on Engineers’ Day.

We are demanding what the rules already guarantee us. We want justice. We want parity. We want our careers back before we retire unseen.

If every cadre can progress as per RR, why can’t we? If every achievement can be noticed, why are we still invisible?

Sir, we need recognition before retirement and before we decompose and mix with the soil.

Jai Arunachal. Jai APJEWA. Jai junior engineers.

Junior engineers,

Arunachal Pradesh