COIMBATORE: Over 150 temporary staff including anti-poaching watchers (APW) and other clerical staff in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) boycotted work in protest against moving them into the outsourcing system of contract.

The staff, who claimed to have put in more than ten years of service, were hoping that they would be made permanent by the forest department.

However, the move to shift their employment to an outsourcing agency has triggered fears among staff of having to continue under the contract system forever. The anti-poaching watchers in Singara and Sigur participated in the protest, while those in other ranges are involved in wildlife census work and they are also expected to join the protest soon.