Thiruvananthapuram:
The stage has been set for an indefinite strike by a section of government employees and teachers in Kerala owing allegiance to pro-left service organisations from January 8 following failure of talks held by Chief Minister Oommen Chandy with Union leaders on Tuesday.
The main demand of the organisations that had called for the strike was withdrawal of the government decision to introduce the Participatory Pension scheme to those who join government service from April 1, 2013.
Though Mr Chandy made it clear that the PPS would not in any way affect the salary or pension of the existing staff, it failed to make any breakthrough on the stand of pro-left service organisations, sources said.
NGO Association Secretary A Sreekumar said they would go ahead with the indefinite strike from January 8.
On the apprehension raised by employees on the suggestions of the Public Expenditure Committee recommendations that pay revision should be made only once ten years, Mr Chandy said the present way of revising the pay once in five years would continue. However, Mr Chandy categorically said government cannot go back on its decision to introduce the PPS from April one.
Mr Chandy also said government was not considering to raise the retirement age of employees.
Meanwhile, the government announced dies-non (no work, no pay) to face the strike. Kerala has about 4.5 lakh government employees.