Af­ter six fort­nights with­out pay, frus­tra­tion boiled over yes­ter­day as con­trac­tors and work­ers un­der the Na­tion­al Re­for­esta­tion and Wa­ter­shed Re­ha­bil­i­ta­tion Pro­gramme (NR­WRP) staged a protest out­side the Rur­al De­vel­op­ment Com­pa­ny’s (RDC) of­fice in Brechin Cas­tle, Cou­va.

Al­though 60 first-time con­trac­tors and 1,800 work­ers were promised fort­night­ly wages on three-month con­tracts be­gin­ning April 4, they claimed not a sin­gle pay­ment was made.

Many said they are now strug­gling to pay bills, and some fear for their safe­ty amid threats from un­paid work­ers.