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Strike in Rajasthan enters 42nd day

Kamla Bora in Jaipur

The longest ever strike by state employees in Rajasthan today entered its 42nd day, badly affecting government offices and paralysing water supply and health services.

Talks between the striking employees and the government are deadlocked over the payment of bonus and additional instalment of dearness allowance.

The state government has maintained that it just isn't in a position to concede to the demands as its coffers are empty. Gehlot has told mediapersons repeatedly that the financial position of his government is so precarious that if it paid the bonus and the additional instalment of dearness allowance as demanded by the striking employees, it might fail to pay monthly salaries to its staff.

The chief minister has also reminded everyone that the government has been forced to downsize its annual plan from Rs 5,022 crore to Rs 3,822 crore.

Gehlot has accused the previous Bharatiya Janata Party government, headed by Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, for the present crisis. He has alleged that Shekhawat government borrowed heavily after its failure to generate internal resources putting a heavy burden of Rs 23,000 crore on the state.

The situation has become so acute that we have to borrow to pay loans, Gehlot said.

Shekhawat, however, refuted the charge saying that it was Gehlot government's mismanagement of funds that had landed it in such a mess.

''The government collected taxes to the tune of Rs 1,100 crore in the current financial year besides raising loans worth over Rs 500 crore. Where has all the money gone,'' he asked.

Meanwhile, informal efforts have begun to break the impasse between the government and the striking employees but no one is certain if they will succeed in view of the adamant attitude adopted by both sides.

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