Bhubaneswar, Aug. 16: Thousands of college and schoolteachers today launched an indefinite strike under the banner of the Odisha School and College Teachers' and Employees' United Forum in front of the Assembly demanding job regularisation.

Their demands include abolition of block grant, introduction of full grant-in-aid and permanent jobs.

The forum urged the government to consider their demands at the earliest. Else, they claimed they would not have any option but to resort to cease work. "We have been demanding abolition of block grant for more than one decade, but the government has remained silent. If the government fails to fulfil our demand, the schools and colleges will be shut down," threatened Schoolteachers' Federation of Odisha convenor Prakash Chandra Mohanty.

The protesters alleged of not getting dearness allowance, pension, service conditions and annual increment. "Our government counterparts are getting a salary in the range between Rs 56,000 and Rs 62,000, while the teachers of 100 per cent grant-in-aid schools would get a salary of Rs 13,500 which is fixed and also without any dearness allowances and increments," alleged Mohanty.

More than 35,000 teachers are working in more than 4,000 block grant schools.

The lecturers also urged the government to mitigate the discrepancies in salary and service conditions. "Lecturers posted in 100 per cent grant-in-aid colleges are getting a monthly salary of Rs 16,000 whereas other lecturers are getting salary between Rs 1.2 lakh and Rs 1.4 lakh every month for the same work," said All Odisha 662 Category Lecturers' and Employees' Association president Golak Nayak. More than 25,000 lecturers and employees were working in more than 1,500 block grant colleges.

School and mass education minister Badrinarayan Patra said he would hold a discussion with the protesters. "The government will try to fulfil some of their demands," he said.