Seemandhra employees want to call off strike

HYDERABAD: Finding it tough to pay for monthly expenses, the Seemandhra employees are urging their leaders to call off the strike they launched in August in demand of rolling back the Centre's decision to divide Andhra Pradesh. The pressure comes on the leaders ahead of their meeting with chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy slated for Wednesday.

With the strike completing its second month this week, the leaders said most of the employees wanted political parties to take over the united-AP movement so that they could resume their duties.

"While they are committed to the cause of Samiakyandhra, the employees are also faced with the livelihood issues. Not able to pay their house rent, EMIs, and school fees, they want to go back to work. They feel that the general public and political parties must take the lead and sustain the movement," said U Muralikrishna, chairman of Seemandhra Employees Forum.

Taking to the streets, after the Congress working committee (CWC) decided in favour of the formation of a separate Telangana state on July 30, over 4 lakh employees had to forgo their salary for two months in accordance with the 'no-work-no-pay' rule. While many of them are banking on loans for the day-to-day expenses, the Dasara-Diwali festival season has come as tough challenge. The employees have decided to skip the celebrations.

"No one is in a mood to celebrate the festival at this hour of distress. But, we can't say the bankers that we could not pay EMIs because of the ongoing strike. We have done enough to register our protest.

Now, it is better to go back to work leaving the agitation to the general public and political parties," said K Narasa Reddy, a commercial tax official.

He felt apart from being tough on negotiations with the CM the employees must be open to the options including calling off the strike.

As the chief minister has invited the striking employees for talks, the meeting is scheduled at 12.30 pm on Wednesday at his secretariat office. The senior government officials exuded confidence that the strike would be called off after the meeting.

However, leaders of the AP Non-Gezetted Officers ( APNGO), an employees' union which is at the forefront of the strike, said they would not call off the strike unless they get a clear assurance on keeping the state united.

"We have launched the struggle knowing the consequences very well. We are not deterred by the troubles. There is no question of calling off the strike without a clear commitment from the Centre to drop the proposal to divide the state," said P Ashok Babu, president of APNGO.

However, he said the representatives of the striking employees would go to the talks with the chief minister with an open mind and further course of action would depend on the outcome of the meeting.

He said the APNGO had written to all MPs and MLAs from the state demanding them to give their commitment to the cause of the united-AP. He said the APNGO members would lay siege to the residences of those MPs and MLAs who failed to respond the letter.

Replying to a query, Ashok Babu said the APNGO would not allow the political parties to take over the stir. He said a delegation would leave for Delhi to meet the national leaders and seek their support following which the APNGO would stage a dharna at Jantar Mantar.

Meanwhile, expressing his concern over the plight of the employees, finance minister Anam Ramanrayana Reddy called upon them to call off the strike.

As he is the member of the cabinet sub-committee on employees' affairs, Anam said he would request the government to convert the strike period into leave and he would try to release festival advance for the employees if they agreed to end the strike.