Chief Secretary warns govt staff, teachers ahead of stir

State government through Chief Secretary Girija Vaithyanathan on Monday issued stringent warning to the government officials who have planned to join the protest organised by JACTO-GEO from Tuesday.

Girija Vaithyanathan in a recent circular sent to all the Secretaries of Government departments, said, “If any of the government servants have not attended office, with an intention to participate in the proposed ‘Indefinite Strike’ from January 22 or any other day, organised by recognised or unrecognised service associations of the teachers and government employees, their period of absence has to be considered as an unauthorised one and as such they are not entitled to pay and allowances on the principle of no work no pay.”

Stressing various demands JACTTO-GEO had called for an indefinite strike from Tuesday. Lakhs of government employees and teachers have planned to join the protest as some of their demands are pending for several years.

Due to the strike there was a threat to the government services and to ensure that the state government machinery was not affected, Chief Secretary sent a circular with severe warnings. She directed the Secretaries to take disciplinary action on the government employees who join the protest.

“Application for casual leave or any other leave from the employees other than medical leave shall not be allowed during the period of strike. In case of part time employees, those on daily wages and consolidated pay, they are liable to be discharged from service if they are found to be participating in the strike,” said Girija Vaidyanathan.

Girija Vaidyanathan also said that before sanctioning medical leave, “No medical leave shall be sanctioned without ascertaining the genuineness of the medical leave applied for, as certified by the Medical Board. If the Medical Board funds that the certificate produced is not on real medical grounds the concerned government servants are liable for penal action and pay for the period of medical leave shall not be claimed.”

Representatives of three government workers’ association met Chief Secretary Girija Vaithyanathan on Monday and assured her that they will not participate in the indefinite protest called by JACTTO-GEO.

The meeting happened in the office of Girija Vaithyanathan in the Secretariat where representatives from Tamil Nadu Secretariat Association (TANSA), Tamil Nadu Government Officials Union (TNGOU) and Tamil Nadu Government Officials Association (C&D group) submitted their respective memorandums with their demands. In the meeting, Girija Vaidyanathan assured appropriate action and following the assurance given by the Chief Secretary, all the representatives assured her that they will not participate in the protest.

JACTTO-GEO announced indefinite protest from January 22 demanding the state government to fulfil their demands including implementation of family pension scheme by replacing the existing new pension scheme, to solve the discrepancies in the seventh pay commission and to release the recommendations of Siddique committee appointed for the purpose, to increase the retiring age of government employees and so on.

However, Soundirarajan, state president of Tamil Nadu Government Officials Association (C&D group) said, “We have 12 long pending demands, and protest is not the only way to get our demands. We have trust in government that all our demands will be met and so we have withdrawn our support to the indefinite protest,” said Soundirarajan.

A student represented by his father has moved the Madras High Court seeking to restrain teachers’ part of Joint Action Committee of Teachers Organisation-Government Employees Organisation (JACTO-GEO) from proceeding with their proposed indefinite strike slated to begin on January 22 in the interest of students.

Justice T Raja before whom the plea came up on Monday was informed that a similar case was moved before the Madurai bench and that Jacto-Geo had offered an assurance of not proceeding with the strike based on Government submission that their demands would be implemented. But now, with the State failing to implement their demand, the present strike call has been given.

However, the judge on taking exception to such a plea being moved at the last minute, posted the case for further hearing to Tuesday after seeking the relevant papers pertaining to the plea at the Madurai bench.

The petitioner R Gokul represented by his father P Raja Sekaran had submitted that he was shocked to find out that the post graduate teachers are going on a strike during the crucial period preceding the board examinations.

Since lakhs of students are to write the board examinations, such a strike would result in a serious blow to the preparations for the examinations and the petitioner and similarly situated students would be put through hardship, the plea said.

Also noting that teachers have no right to strike or boycott and any such boycott/strike shall be illegal as per the law laid down by the Supreme Court and high court in a long line of decisions, the plea sought the court to restrain the teachers from resorting to any form of boycott until the completion of the board examination.