GUJRANWALA, April 1: The employees of the Gujranwala Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education refused on Monday to call off their strike from Tuesday (today).

The strike call was given by the Boards Employees Federation to press the authorities concerned to increase the salaries of the staff with effect from December 2001 in accordance with new pay scales announced by the government.

According to reports, Gujranwala BISE chairman Dr Muhammad Aslam Ghauri and secretary Muhammad Ahtaram Dar held a meeting with the employees of the examination branches on Monday. They asked the employees to call off their strike and cooperate with board administration in connection with the preparation of the result of the secondary school certificate annual examinations and holding of the intermediate part-I and part-II annual examinations scheduled to commence from next month.

The staff of examination branches informed the BISE chairman and secretary that employees of all BISEs in the Punjab had unanimously decided to observe strike from Tuesday.

They were of the view that employees of autonomous bodies like the Punjab Textbook Board were getting their salaries according to the new pay scales. Only BISEs employees were getting their salaries according to the old scales.

They said that all employees would wear black armband on Tuesday and observe two hours’ pen-down strike on Wednesday and go on complete strike from Thursday.

POs HELD: Police claimed on Monday to have arrested four proclaimed offenders and a constable, involved in murder and dacoity cases, from GT Road.

According to Satellite Town police, the accused were going to Nausheran Virkan from Lahore on a four-wheeler. They were stopped at a picket on GT Road in Saddar area, searched and taken into custody on suspicion.

Later, the arrested accused told police that their ring leader Pervaiz Alias Paijo was involved in the killing of Pakistan Medical Association’s leader Dr Ghulam Rasul and others in Ferozewala besides dozens of dacoity, robbery, murder and other cases.

One of the arrested men is a constable posted at Tetley police station.

BAN ON TRANSFERS: District Nazim Fiaz Ahmad Chattha banned on Monday the transfers of the teaching staff of the education institutions in the district.