Ludhiana: Work hit at govt offices as ministerial staff go on pen-down strike

Ministerial staff at all government departments went on a pen-down strike on Tuesday. Some of the staff were present in their respective offices but they did not do much routine work as a mark of protest against the state government for its dilly-dallying tactics in fulfilling their demands. Many leaders sat outside Ludhiana DC’s office to observe the strike.

At Mini-Secretariat and other departments, the staff announced the pen-down strike for the day on the call given by the employees’ union at Chandigarh.

At the same time, most of the officials at the district administration had deputed other staff to carry on with emergency services so that no visitors should be harassed.

DC Himanshu Jain said: “We had ensured services which are essential and emergent such as certificates for school admission and registries were carried out without any hassle. Public should not to be harassed due to the strike. Most of other staff cooperated during the protest. Sub-registrar offices were also functioning.”

It was the second such strike observed by the ministerial staff in the past 15 days to meet their demands. Leaders said if the union at Chandigarh decides to carry on with the protest, they would follow the instructions.

The work at the Municipal Corporation was also carried out as usual and the strike failed to make much impact.