Bhubaneswar, Aug. 17: Nearly 8,000 teachers and employees of the Block Grant Secondary School Teachers and Employees’ Association today went on an indefinite hunger strike at Mahatma Gandhi Marg demanding salaries on a par with their counterparts in government-run high schools.

This time, hundreds of students from various block grant high schools in the state have joined the protest.

The association, which has been staging ceasework since August 1, is demanding the abolition of block grant and reinstatement of the grant-in-aid (GIA) system. The body consists of around 25,000 teachers and employees of 1,983 block grant high schools of the state.

Disrupted classes have affected nearly 3,00,000 students enrolled in these schools. The students, who also staged a rally this afternoon, had urged the government to resolve the deadlock, so that classes could resume. “We have been missing classes since August 1. Our school is shut and we are forced to study at home. We appeal to the government officers to consider our plight,” said Pratap Kumar Nayak, a Class X student from Angul, who participated in the rally.

President of the association Prasant Kumar Mohapatra said: “We have been protesting for the past 17 days, but it is disheartening that the government is taking the matter lightly. Instead of opening dialogue with us, the government is threatening to withdraw grants from our schools.”

On August 1, the association members locked the office of the circle inspector of schools. “The chief secretary had assured us our problem would be resolved by a high-power committee. But it was eyewash. The government has been making false promises,” said Prasant Pati, general secretary of the association. The demands include abolition of the block grant system, 100 per cent grant-in-aid under the Orissa Revised Scales of Pay Rules, 2008, and extension of benefits of the Sarva Sikshya Abhiyan and the Rastriya Madhyamik Sikshya Abhiyan to these institutions.

Last week, the state government, in an official circular, warned the striking teachers and employees of strict disciplinary action if they did not join work immediately. Refusing to budge, the association had resolved to continue their protest till their demands were met.

The teachers in the block grant high schools get a monthly remuneration of Rs 4,995 each, while an non-teaching staff member is paid Rs 2,548 as a monthly salary. On the other hand, a teacher in a government high school receives Rs 20,358 as monthly salary, while the non-teaching staff members get Rs 8,607 a month.