Calcutta: The Mamata Banerjee government has made attendance of government employees mandatory during Monday's general strike called by the Congress and the CPM against the fuel price hike.

Normal life is likely to be affected, though, as the ruling Trinamul Congress has announced several programmes against the "policies" of the BJP-led government.

"Salaries of employees who fail to turn up for work on Monday will be docked and their service considered broken. The government will stick to its policy of disallowing the bandh culture," said a state finance department official.

The Congress has called a six-hour nationwide strike, between 9am and 3pm, to protest escalating fuel prices. The CPM has called a 12-hour strike between 6am and 6pm.

After Trinamul came to power in 2011, the Bengal government decided to cancel any kind of leave on bandh days and announced stern measures against those who do attend office.

The government had initiated penal measures against more than 50,000 employees absent during a Left bandh in 2012. Since then, attendance in government offices on bandh days has never been a problem for the Trinamul government.

"The government had played an active role in foiling bandhs. It ensured that a large number of state-run buses ply. It promised private transporters security and insurance during bandhs to encourage them to take out their vehicles. All these gradually made bandhs irrelevant in Bengal," said an official.

But this time, the situation appears different, with Trinamul announcing several programmes on Monday.

"We will organise a protest march from Moulali crossing to Dorina Crossing in Esplanade at 3pm on September 10," Trinamul secretary-general Partha Chatterjee said on Friday.

According to him, the party supports any protest on anti-people issues but won't join the strike because it is against bandhs.

"We do not want to disrupt normal life and productivity in the name of bandhs," Chatterjee, also a minister, said.

Others contrasted the situation. "In previous bandhs, Trinamul had actively worked to foil them. Ministers were busy monitoring the situation across the state. This time, they will be busy holding rallies," said a senior official.

A source said that during the last big bandh called by major central unions on September 2, 2016, the Trinamul government had worked overtime to thwart it.

The CPM dared Trinamul to join the strike and prove it was serious against fighting the BJP at the Centre.

"If she (Mamata) is really serious about fighting against the anti-people policies of the BJP-led central government, she should come forward and join hands with the Left to make the strike successful on Monday," CPM state secretary Surjya Kanta Mishra said.