Govt employees go on mass casual leave over higher wages

Ahmedabad, May 1 (UNI) State government employees today went on a day's mass casual leave over demands for hike in wages.

Gujarat State Employees' Co-ordination Committee president Vishu Patel said over 95 per cent of the employees had gone on a casual leave against the State government's refusal to meet their long-pending demands and termed the protest as a ''total success''.

The demands include merger of Dearness Allowance (DA) with basic pay, since April 1, 2004 and Leave Travel Allowance (LTA), he said.

''Barring offices in Ahmedabad and Jamnagar, which registered 50 per cent attendance, all other state government offices, including treasury offices, sales tax offices, municipalities remained closed today,'' he said.

Employees Co-ordination Committee treasurer Anand Pandya said though the employees of State Assembly did not go on leave, they showed solidarity to their cause by wearing black arm-bands.

Meanwhile, 15,000 employees of district panchayat in Vadodara went on strike including 7,000 from the city. The strike was total except in the revenue department of the Collectorate, Mr Patel added.

UNI