HYDERABAD, March 18: Under the banner of the Sindh Employees Association, a token hunger strike was observed outside the press club here on Monday to press for the acceptance of the demands.

Over 40 professors and lecturers, high school teachers, primary school teachers, mosque school teachers, subject specialists, clerks and lower staff observed hunger strike.

Their demands include the reinstatement of the five sacked primary teachers of Sukkur, immediate release of primary school teacher, Ghulam Sarwar Bhutto, withdrawal of cases against the teachers, cancellation of transfer orders of Prof Shafqat Hussain Jokhio and Agha Shabbir Tareen of the Government Degree College, Sukkur, and withdrawal of the show-cause notices issued to the office-bearers of the organizations of the teachers.

The other demands are the implementation of the decisions of the steering committee appointed by the Sindh chief secretary, withdrawal of the Sindh cabinet decision about the denationalization of the educational institutions of Sindh, revival of move-over, selection grade and advance increments, revival of 25 per cent service quota for the children of teachers, ministerial staff and lower staff and grant of 60 per cent house rent and 40 percent of medical allowance to the teachers and government employees of Sindh irrespective of the place of posting.

The SEA further demanded that an educationist should be appointed as the Sindh education secretary, no fee should be charged from the students for the subject of information technology, EDO (education), Sukkur, Rafia Naz Pathan, should be removed, the decision pertaining to the merger of seniority list of the government and nationalized cadre of college teachers should be withdrawn, the teachers should be exempted from the payment of income tax like other Saarc countries and teachers should be appointed at the vacant posts in the educational institutions of Sindh and the shortage of computers, furniture, books and scientific equipments should be eliminated.

WOMAN RECOVERY DEMANDED: A woman from New Wahdat Colony observed a token hunger strike along with her two minor daughters outside the press club here on Monday to protest against the delay in the recovery of her eleven-year-old daughter, Noor Bano.