Calcutta, March 28: Faced with stiff resistance from the three employees? unions at the ailing Great Eastern Hotel, the government has decided to approach the UK?s department for international development (DFID) for extending its March 31 deadline.

The DFID, which is funding the early retirement scheme offered to the 400-odd hotel employees, had set the deadline for the government to let it know about the outcome of the ERS offer. The employees were supposed to express their acceptance of the offer by March 26.

Amid allegations that the unions were resisting the employees from opting for the ERS, the March 26 deadline elapsed without a single employee applying for it.

The government today again indicated that it would stick to its stand on the privatisation of the 165-year-old hotel.

?Our government will stand by its decision. There is no question of thinking of other alternatives,? public enterprises minister Nirupam Sen said today.

Sen?s department is drawing up privatisation plans for the hotel.

Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said at Writers? Buildings this evening that talks were on with the hotel unions to convince them about the government?s viewpoint.

Despite receiving Rs 15.8 crore to fund the ERS, the government cannot draw money from the fund as there were no takers for the scheme.

Speaking on the extension of the deadline set by the DFID, Sen said: ?We will have to discuss the issue with them and settle this matter.?

DFID officials here declined to comment saying it was a policy issue to be decided by the higher officials in Delhi.

The tourism department today called off a ?review meeting? it was scheduled to hold to assess the situation arising out of the hotel impasse in the face of indications from officials that Bhattacharjee might step in to end it.

A section of the hotel employees had written to tourism secretary Tapan Burman last week saying they were finding it difficult to procure ERS forms from the hotel as the officer in charge of distributing them was ?not cooperative?.

Burman said his department had investigated the allegation, but did not reveal the findings of the probe.

Tourism minister Dinesh Dakua had earlier said the hotel will die a ?natural death? if the employees refuse to leave.