PONDICHERRY: Unified Action Committee members of the ministerial staff of Pondicherry Government continued their relay fast for the third day in succession on Sunday, urging the administration to concede their two-point charter of demands--restructuring of the posts of clerks and assistants and also upward revision of their pay scales--without any further delay.

Three employees (all clerical staff) who fainted in the course of fast on Saturday night were rushed to the government hospital (situated only a few metres away from the venue of the fast) and were since discharged after treatment.

The ministerial staff were also on indefinite mass leave since January 4 in support of their demands.

Meanwhile, the administration issued orders on January 7 amalgamating the two grades of posts of superintendents (Grade I and II) to establish parity with the staffing pattern adopted in the Central Government departments and also in the administration of New Delhi and granted it retrospectively from January 1996.

This arrangement synchronises with the implementation of the recommendation of the Fifth Pay Commission.

There is now only one category of Superintendents, and it is a Group B gazetted post .

Explaining the reason for continuation of the strike and fast the staff said that the amalgamation was only a partial settlement of the demands of the staff as the remaining two crucial demands were left in the cold by the government. They said they would continue the indefinite leave and also the relay fast till the two demands were conceded.

In the meanwhile, a spokesman of the Association of Superintendents welcomed the order of the Administration integrating the two grades of posts of superintendents.

He said, in a release here today, that actually the order for amalgamation was finalised way back in 1997 by the then Lt Governor. But certain discouraging circumstances choked the implementation of the order and the battle for the amalgamation had been on since last eight years.

The association thanked the Chief Minister and the entire cabinet for effecting the amalgamation retrospectively from January 1996.

Former Local Administration Minister and lone Tamil Maanila Congress legislator "Theni" C. Jayakumar urged the government that the demands of the ministerial staff should be sanctioned without any delay.

He said, in a release on Saturday, that the staff had been up in arms against the government and had been focusing their demands in a phased manner.

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