Govt.-revenue staff talks end in deadlock

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, SEPT. 9. The talks between the Government and leaders of the revenue staff, held for the third day on Sunday, ended in a deadlock with both sides sticking to their stands.

At an emergency executive meeting held later, the Andhra Pradesh Revenue Services Association decided to go ahead with the strike as per its earlier plan - from the midnight of Monday. The meeting felt that the Government instead of punishing IAS officers who were ``guilty'' of irregularities, was going out of the way to protect them making the revenue staff ``scapegoats.''

The association president and general secretary, Messrs. K. Lakshmaiah and T. Sudhakara Prasad, ruled out their compliance if they were invited to another round of talks either by the Revenue Minister, Mr. P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, or the Principal Secretary for Revenue, Mr. A. V. S. Reddy.

They, however, said, they were ready to meet the Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, if called by the latter. In fact, they were responding to the appeal made by the Chief Minister and had postponed the strike from September 6 to 10.

Mr. G. Purnachandra Rao and Mr. A. Krishna Reddy, chairman and deputy secretary-general respectively of the Joint Action Committee of Employees, Teachers and Workers, pledged ``total support'' to the strike but appealed to the Chief Minister to intervene as none of the 18 demands put forth by the revenue staff was met. They sailed with APRSA leaders, charging that the actions by District Collectors were ``motivated'' and that the Government, instead of taking action against them, was ``trying to shield them.''

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