Employees continue strike, Omar Abdullah offers fresh talks

SRINAGAR - Government employees across the Kashmir Valley continued their strike for the fifth day Friday to demand payment of the 6th Pay Commission arrears even as they welcomed the offer for fresh talks by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

Khurshid Alam, leader of the Employees’ Joint Action Committee (EJAC), told reporters that the offer of fresh talks by the chief minister was welcome, but the discussion needed to be result-oriented and meaningful.

“We do not want any confrontation with the government. The offer of talks has to be initiated by the government, but we want our demands to be accepted,” Alam said.

He also told reporters that during the last four days, 71 striking employees had been arrested by the police after the government invoked the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA).

The striking employees are demanding payment of arrears as per the recommendations of the 6th Pay Commission and enhancement of retirement age from the present 58 to 60.

As part of the tough posturing to break the strike, senior police officers have been ordered to check the attendance of government employees at the district levels and report it to the provincial administration.

The striking employees also propose to take out a march to city centre Lal Chowk on April 12, which the administration is determined to foil.

“We have clear orders to disallow any such march by the employees,” a senior police officer said here.

Interestingly, the Srinagar Municipal Corporation whose employees have joined the strike, Friday engaged labourers on daily wage basis to clear garbage from the city, which has a population of 1.2 million.

A high level meeting of senior police and civil officers was held here late Thursday where a contingency plan to deal with the strike was reviewed.

“Essential services like water supplies, electricity etc are working normally and we have ensured these do not get disrupted,” a senior official said.

The authorities here maintain that emergency services and operation theatres in the various hospitals across the Valley are also working normally.

However, the relatives of patients in the city’s major hospitals like the SMHS hospital, complained that no attention was being paid to hygiene and cleanliness and the wards were littered with refuse and dirt.

“There is dirt all over in the ward where my wife was admitted after a surgery. There is every chance of the patients catching infection,” said Muhammad Zaman, 45, a resident of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district.

The government has said it is committed in principle to pay the 6th Pay Commission arrears to its employees, but needs Rs.4,200 crore for it and does not have the money at present.

“We are vigorously pursuing the issue with the central government for financial support, and the arrears would be paid immediately on receipt of the same,” said a senior finance department official.