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Employees' strike cripples Rajasthan

Kamla Bora in Jaipur

The state-wide indefinite strike by government employees in Rajasthan has paralyzed almost all services, with the agitation intensifying everyday.

The strike, started by a section of state employees on December 15, has now been joined by various rival unions and is posing a big challenge to the 13-month Congress government of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

The strike has already started affecting the supply of drinking water, and medical and health services, after the staff of essential services joined the stir from yesterday.

The state government invoked provisions of the Rajasthan Essential Services Maintenance Act on last Saturday but the move only resulted in the strike being intensified further.

The staff maintaining water supply systems, technicians and other employees in government hospitals and staff in the high court and lower courts have also joined the strike since then.

Many localities in Jaipur went without drinking water this morning as engineers tried to maintain regular supply without assistance from the lower staff. Reports reaching the state headquarters suggest a similar situation in all major towns.

Other reports said diagnostic and other services in government hospitals have also been suspended and that many of the lower courts are locked.

While the nursing staff has announced its decision to join the strike from tomorrow, the joint action committee of the Rajasthan State Electricity Board Employees has asked the state government to take immediate steps for ending the strike.

Even as the police rounded up nearly 500 union leaders in different parts of the state, the striking staff today launched a 'jail bharo' agitation, courting arrests in Jaipur and other district headquarters, to press their demand for payment of bonus and additional instalment of dearness allowance.

The chief minister has flatly refused to concede any of the demands, saying repeatedly that the government's coffer is empty and it is not in a position to pay.

However, the JAC refutes the contention on the ground the staff are not putting forward any new demand but are only asking for their legitimate dues which they were receiving for the last several years.

The striking employees committee asserts that payments to the state staff under the heads of bonus and instalment of dearness allowance have been provided for in the current year's budget passed by the state assembly.

The state government, which had been claiming earlier that only a handful of staff were on strike, yesterday conceded that more that 94,000 employees are not reporting for duty.

The agitation, meanwhile, is turning violent at several places, and employees clashed with the police in Jaipur and in other towns.

The prolonged strike has started causing great anxiety in the ruling Congress party which is gearing up to fight panchayat elections later this month and the six assembly bye-polls next month.

Several senior Congress leaders do not approve of the way in which the situation is being handled.

Pradesh Congress Committee chief Girija Vyas has publicly expressed her desire that the government should start a dialogue with the striking leaders to end the impasse.

A cabinet subcommittee, headed by cooperative minister Gulab Singh Shaktawat, had almost reached an agreement with the striking leaders after holding three rounds of talks last week but failed to convince the chief minister of the settlement.

Gehlot, who is under pressure after the Congress debacle in the Lok Sabha elections, is facing yet another threat to this stewardship as his detractors are blaming his lack of administrative acumen in dealing with the strike.

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