A nation-wide 24-hour general strike called by major trade unions Tuesday could cripple the country’s transport, banking and postal systems after the government’s attempts to avert it remained unsuccessful Monday.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had appealed to all the major trade unions and 5,000 unaffiliated unions to call off the strike. But the unions rejected the appeal as it came only 48 hours before one of the largest strike calls in the history of independent India.

However, a section of the unions appeared to back off. The Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) said it would not be participating in the strike.

“The strike is politically motivated and illegal. We will oppose it tomorrow,” Ashok Choudhary, national president of INTUC, told IANS. The INTUC is backed by the Congress party.

Unions linked to other coalition partners of the United Progressive Alliance government, including the one affiliated to Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress — Indian National Trinamool Trade Union Congress, will also not be participating.

Others, who oppose the country-wide strike call are the ones affiliated to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam (DMK).

It seems political considerations have prevailed over their earlier decision to go on strike.

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