By Partha Sarathi Behera
RAIPUR: Around 4.5 lakh officers and employees of the Chhattisgarh government went on an indefinite strike from Monday, leaving work paralyzed in offices across the state. The agitating employees are demanding a hike in dearness allowance and other facilities at par with the central government employees.
As collectorates in the districts, revenue and other offices remained closed, Chhattisgarh Karmchari Adhikari Federation (CKAF), the largest registered body of state government officers and employees, claimed that 92 per cent of the workforce joined the agitation.
As many as 98 different organizations of state government employees, including judicial and revenue courts’ staff, participated in the strike to push for their demand of 34% DA and HRA as per the 7th pay scale which central government employees are enjoying at present, said CKAF state convener Kamal Verma.
For the first time, tehsildars and naib tehsildars and staff of 23 judicial districts of the state joined the strike, he said. RTO, GST, Transport Department, Registry offices and Public Relations department were also affected by the strike on the first day, he said.
Verma expressed the hope that chief minister Bhupesh Baghel will pay heed to their demands and find a solution soon. “We don’t want to make people suffer because of this strike, but at the same time we cannot sacrifice our rights,” he said.
Employees and officials of Raipur Municipal Corporation (RMC) and its zonal offices extended their support to the strike by wearing black badges at their workplaces. According to RMC sources.
BJP national vice president Raman Singh accused the Chhattisgarh government of crushing the government employees’ democratic rights. The employees have resorted to indefinite strike for their genuine demand of 34% DA and HRA according to the 7th pay scale from Monday.
"The countdown to Bhupesh Baghel government has begun and I can assure that the BJP government will fulfil all the demands when the party comes back to power after one and a half years,” said the former chief minister. He also accused the chief minister of using cheap language in his statements.
Senior BJP leader Brijmohan Agrawal said that the employees should not be afraid of this government which will be thrown away by the people of the state after one year.
