The work at all Punjab Government offices is expected to come to a halt on Tuesday as thousands of ministerial staff will stage a protest over their demands.Industries Minister and Punjab AAP chief Aman Arora called the strike “illegal”, saying the the DA matter was sub judice. “The government will take action as per law if the public faces inconvenience. We appeal to employees not to become political tools as the government is committed to their welfare. We have already addressed 60 per cent DA demand of 85,000 employees and are willing to ensure salary parity with the Centre for others,” the minister said.Though the government tried to break away a section of employees by announcing enhanced dearness allowance for 85,000 employees recruited after July 17, 2020, and even transferred Punjab Civil Secretariat Staff Association president Sushil Kumar Fauji today from the Secretariat to the Subordinate Services Selection Board in Mohali, the employees have remained undeterred.“We will not be cowed down by these tactics. Earlier, they transferred me from the Secretariat to the Planning Department office in Sector 33. But we are determined to exercise our democratic right to protest for our genuine demands, to which even the High Court has agreed,” Sukhchain Khera, convener of the Joint Action Committee of all unions, told The Tribune.These employees have said they are going ahead with the protest called to pressurise the government to release their dearness allowance dues and also against the state government asking all heads of departments to issue show-cause notices to employees who participated in the August 27 mass casual leave protest, which was declared as unauthorised leave by the state government.They also said that though the government said they were enhancing DA for all 85,000 employees recruited after July 2020, very few would benefit as most of them were on a three-year probation, getting a fixed salary.On Tuesday, while the state government buses will ply as usual, government hospitals and other healthcare institutions and schools will also not be shut, as teachers, doctors and other paramedics will be on duty. However, the clerical work in these institutions will be affected, as the ministerial staff will stage a protest. “This is a protest called by the Punjab State Ministerial Services Union alone. Across the state, all ministerial staff will sit outside their offices and protest against the government,” said Khera.Meanwhile, Industries Minister Aman Arora said Punjab spends 51% of revenue on salaries and pensions, the highest among major states. The government must also protect public services. We stand with employees and are committed to resolving genuine concerns through dialogue.