APNGO indefinite strike may paralyze administration

Tirupati: As the talks held between the leaders of APNGO Association and government officials failed to make a breakthrough, the Non-gazetted officers affiliated to APNGO Association have decided to go on an indefinite strike from the midnight of Monday, which may bring the entire administration in the Chittoor district to a standstill.

The Municipal Administrative Employees Association has also handed over strike notice to the Additional Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of Tirupati Municipal Corporation and the same was faxed to the Directorate of Municipal Administration.
The APNGO district president Krishnama Naidu said that more than 10,000 government employees include the drivers, attenders and the class-IV employees of all the departments are joining the indefinite strike by exempting a few essential services like sanitation, drinking water and power supply. He also said that government teachers have also expressed unconditional support to Samaikyandhra agitation and may join this indefinite strike August 16 onwards. In fact, the gazette officers have also expressed support to this strike and the Tahasildars and Mandal Development Officers are joining the strike directly, he added.

Meanwhile, the employees from Revenue, Treasury, Panchayatraj, Irrigation, R&B and other departments are also joining the strike in Tirupati division. Altogether around 35,000 government employees in Chittoor district may boycott the regular duties and the entire administration would be affected by the strike. Municipal Employees Union leader K L Varma said that all the regular services in Tirupati Municipal Corporation may be hit.

The issue of birth and death certificates, collection of taxes, preparation of reservation reports for the proposed municipal elections and several other services may also be affected with this strike. Almost for the past thirteen days, all the employees are on strike and a few of them made several attempts to attend to duties, but the Samaikyandhra agitators entered the office and demanded the boycott of duties, he pointed. Likewise, the entire work was hampered, he said. But they have omitted the essential services from this strike and if the union government did not withdrew the decision over the Telangana issue, certainly all these essential services would also join this strike, he said.

Meanwhile, the TTD employees, who were more than 9000 in number, have also handed over their strike notice to Executive Officer and are bent upon joining the strike. Though all the employees are taking part in indefinite strike, the employees working at local temples and at Tirumala temple would be on duty to extend their services to pilgrims coming from different parts of the state and the country. The government teachers may join this strike from August 16 onwards.