Cuttack: The ongoing cease work by the lawyers of Orissa High Court here has had an unprecedented impact on those other than litigants, who earn their daily bread from the functioning of the state apex court.

"There have been incidents of cease work by the lawyers in the past, some of them for days together. But, things have never been such bad because filing of cases was never stopped as part of any agitation," said High Court Moharir Association president Krushna Chandra Mishra.

"As no cases are being filed, earning even a penny is difficult. This is also the case with the five stamp vendors and notaries," Mishra said.

The high court advocates, who have been abstaining from court work since February 12 demanding appointment of judges to the vacant posts, intensified their agitation on Tuesday by launching a relay hunger strike and stopping the filing of cases.

Maa Tarini Xerox and Lamination near the northern gate of the court receives around 2000 pages for making photocopies a day whenever the court functions. On Friday, it struggled to get even a hundred copies.

Its owner Jayanti Rout said: "Even during lawyers' strikes filing of cases brought some business. But if things continue like this, we have to simply keep the shutters down." There are nearly 30 such photocopy shops in and around the court.

Suryakanta Das, who sells tea in the high court, said: "On the five working days of a week, lawyers and clients come here to have tea. I use around 15 to 17 litres of milk and go back home with an earring of at least Rs 300 to Rs 350 a day. However, I have not been able to use even two litres of milk a day since Tuesday."

The official cafeteria is only open while the shutters of all the eateries on the high court premises have come down.

Its owner K. Bhasar Rao said: "Business reduced to less than 20 per cent. With no lawyers and clients, I am left only to cater to the high court staff members and officials."

Rabindra Panda, a typist, has not earned even a rupee for the past five days, like the dozen other typists. He said: "In my 30 years here, I have never been hit such hard. Even during strikes we got work as clients who filed cases came to us." Typist Nabakishore Das echoed the same.

High Court Bar Association secretary Satyabrata Mohanty said: "The hunger strike will continue, and our future course of action will be decided on Monday."

The high court has been functioning with 16 judges as against a sanctioned strength of 27. A judge was last appointed here on April 17, 2015.

No names have been recommended to the Supreme Court collegiums for the post of judge since Justice Vineet Saran assumed office as the chief justice on February 2, 2016.