Kolkata, March 13 Government offices across West Bengal largely functioned normally on Friday despite a “strike” called by a forum of employees and teachers demanding payment of pending Dearness Allowance (DA).
The agitation, called by the Sangrami Joutha Mancha, evoked a limited response in most parts of the state, with attendance ranging between 90 and 100 per cent in government offices, official sources said.
Offices, including the state secretariat Nabanna, Writers' Buildings, the New Secretariat, and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, remained operational, they said.
Normal functioning was also reported from block offices, panchayats, municipalities, and schools across north and south Bengal, officials said.
The “strike” was called by the Sangrami Joutha Mancha to press for its demand that the state government clear DA arrears and implement a recent direction of the Supreme Court of India on the issue.
Convener of the Trinamool Congress-backed State Government Employees’ Federation, Pratap Nayek, claimed the agitation failed to disrupt work.
"State government employees foiled the 'strike', and attendance was around 95 to 100 per cent everywhere. We thank them for their support," he said, alleging that agitators attempted to prevent staff from entering offices at some places, but federation members resisted such moves.
However, Bhaskar Ghosh, convener of the Sangrami Joutha Mancha, claimed the protest was successful and said it had an impact in several schools across the state.
Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari also claimed that the “strike” received widespread support.
Adhikari said that if the Bharatiya Janata Party comes to power in the state, it would implement the recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission and ensure payment of dues within 45 days.
Earlier in the day, a commotion broke out outside Khadya Bhavan, the headquarters of the state Food and Civil Supplies Department, as protesters tried to prevent employees from entering the building.
Ghosh said protesters offered red roses to employees who came to work, requesting them not to join duties in solidarity with the agitation.
"Many listened, while those who did not, acted according to their conscience," he told reporters.
According to the Forum, employees participating in the protest refrained from performing official duties and did not sign attendance registers.
The platform, in a statement, condemned the alleged attack on protesting state government employees in different parts of the state and repressive measures against them by the ruling dispensation.
The organisation alleged that the state government has not taken adequate steps to implement the Supreme Court’s directive to follow a phased process for payment of DA to employees on a par with central government staff.
In Bankura town, protesters blocked the main gate of the district magistrate’s office and urged employees not to join work. Similar demonstrations were held outside the sub-divisional office in Bishnupur, while teachers organised rallies and staged protests before the offices of the district school inspector and the district primary school council.
In a press statement, the Bangiyo Shikshak O Shikshakarmi Samiti, an organisation of teachers and non-teaching staff, claimed that the response to the “strike” reflected growing resentment among employees over the alleged deprivation of their legitimate dues by the state government.
The Samiti’s general secretary Swapan Mondal said, “We congratulate the teachers, education workers and government employees of the state for their fighting spirit. The way the government is depriving us has pushed us to the wall.”
He warned that if the state government fails to take positive steps within the next 15 days, the joint platform spearheading the agitation would intensify the movement and move towards paralysing government offices and educational institutions.
The apex court had directed the state to pay 25 per cent of the DA arrears accumulated between 2008 and 2019 by March 31, the forum said, claiming little visible progress has been made so far.
The West Bengal Finance Department on Thursday issued a memorandum making attendance compulsory for all state government employees on Friday.
The directive stated that all state government offices and institutions receiving grants-in-aid must remain fully functional, and employees would not be allowed to avail casual leave or any other form of absence except in cases of medical emergencies or exigencies.
The dispute over DA parity between the state government and a section of employees has been continuing for several years, with employees demanding parity with central government staff and payment of arrears pending since 2008.