At T2,immigration officials on ‘go-slow strike’

“I had collected my baggage and could have easily walked out of the airport. My only concern was that flying again would be a problem. I came back and knocked loudly on one of the immigration counters to get my passport stamped,” said the passenger,a senior official with the Government of India.

The passenger said the flight had not arrived before time. In fact,it was 10 minutes late.

“The solitary official who was sitting on his desk completely ignored what I said. At least a dozen officials were sitting inside a cabin and talking loudly. There was certainly no sense of urgency,and by that time all passengers had queued up at the immigration counters,” another passenger said.

Sources told Newsline the department officials are on a ‘go-slow’ strike as their shift timings have been increased.

“They have been asked to work six days instead of five. Earlier,each official used to get a rest time of 24 hours after a 12-hour shift. It has now been reduced to 12 hours of rest after a 12-hour shift. While there is no declared strike,they are ‘going slow’ with the work,” a source said.

The matter is now being investigated,officials said,since it involved a flight from Colombo,considered a very sensitive destination.