On September 29, the Telegram channel (Banker's Diary) published a list of 17 banks, including the provincial administration of the Central Bank, whose workers were allegedly forced to pick cotton in Namangan province. The channel added that it was instructed to attract 1470 pickers to Uchkurgan district.

In addition, according to the data, 1,164 employees were engaged in the cotton campaign as of September 21, having collected 41,662 kg of cotton. The table also shows pickers' temporary residences and farms where cotton was picked.

The Central Bank, citing its provincial branches, said that information about the forcing of bank employees was not confirmed.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations reported that since September 21, work has been underway to prevent cases of forced labor in the cotton harvest, ensure decent working conditions and timely payment.

As of September 29, the State Labor Inspectorate got 50 applications, of which 22 through the call center, 2 through the website and 26 through social networks. Most of the applications are in Namangan - 11, Kashkadarya - 10, Jizzakh - 6, Andijan - 5, Tashkent - 4 and Bukhara provinces - 3.

It is reported that in 16 cases citizens were involved in forced labor by makhallas, in 6 cases they were bank employees. The Ministry of Labor noted that all messages are being studied and measures are being taken to immediately rectify the identified problems.

“Despite this, according to the results of daily monitoring, the working groups imposed 28 million soums of fines on officials for only 2 cases of forced labor and 4 cases of improper conclusion of labor contracts and non-compliance with working conditions,” the statement said.

A source in the Ministry of Labor said that the situation with forced labour in Namangan banks is still being studied, but “the facts are partially confirmed”. In the coming days, a conclusion is expected on these facts.

By the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan dated September 8, the Council of Ministers of Karakalpakstan, governor and mayors’ offices are responsible for preventing the involvement of employees of educational, medical and other budget-financed organizations, as well as pupils and students of educational institutions, in the cotton harvesting process.

Meanwhile, according to many signals, now employees of other government bodies which are out of the radar of the international community, such as banks, gas, electricity, water supply entities and many others are being forced to pick cotton.