MCD strike: Arvind Kejriwal to make an announcement at 3 pm today

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal will reportedly make an announcement at 3 PM today in order to address the ongoing MCD outrage over the non-payment of salaries. Kejriwal said he was hopeful that the decision would satisfy everyone and put an end to the strike.

Meanwhile, the eighth day of the MCD strike resulted in the major roads in the capital being blocked - throwing peak hour traffic out of gear even as the Delhi government suggested that the continuing protests were "political" in nature and had been instigated by BJP.

Delhi home minister Satyender Jain tweeted, "If salaries are paid up to Dec than why strike?"

Commuters had a harrowing time as traffic came to a standstill in various parts of the city as sanitation workers blocked major thoroughfares such as NH 24 and Vikas Marg among others. They dumped garbage and set tyres ablaze on the roads.

Lt Governor Najeeb Jung, who had on 2 February recommended to the AAP government to extend "conditional" loans to the civic bodies, is set to meet home minister Rajnath Singh later on in the day.

The strike has crippled functioning of hospitals and schools run by civic bodies, besides garbage disposal even as the Delhi government continues to insist that it has already released the entire fund to the municipal bodies under non-plan head.

The MCD Doctors Association also plan to move the Delhi High court asking that their services be transferred from the MCD to the Delhi government on a permanent basis. According to reports, many MCD-run hospitals also witnessed a shutdown on 1 February.

The doctors have also written to Kejriwal asking his government an the centre to bail the MCD from the financial crisis.

The contractors of NDMC and EDMC have also extended their support to the ongoing strike, threatening they will stop all ongoing works of the two municipal corporations from 10 February.

Thousands of agitators yesterday took out a protest march from the Civic Centre to Rajghat carrying begging bowls to draw attention to their demands.

-- With agency inputs