The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) staff, owing allegiance to the Municipal Mazdoor Union led by NCP leader Sharad Rao, went on a strike from Monday night demanding salaries on the lines of the sixth pay commission.

Civic employees who have joined the strike include those involved in jobs such as garbage collection, dousing fires, monitoring water supply and working in civic hospitals.

However, Shiv Sena's Municipal Karmachari Kamgar Sena led by Baba Kadam is not participating in the agitation.

Rao blamed municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar for instigating the strike and said he would negotiate only with deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar and executive president of Shiv Sena Uddhav Thackeray.

Rao said Kumar had reneged on the pay revision promised on August 9.

The unions are demanding nurses and teachers to be placed in pay band 2 instead of 1, doubling of allowances, transport allowance to be paid as per the sixth pay commission, firemen to be placed in pay band 2 and oppose alleged discrimination in favour of selected officials.

The civic administration has appealed the unions not to go against the Industrial Act by participating in the strike.

The civic chief has warned that those participating in the agitation would lose their salary and would be marked as absent. Also any losses arising out of agitation would be compensated from the salaries of the employees.

State home guards, civil defence labourers and NGO workers will be pressed into action if needed, BMC officials said. Home guards will ensure water supply is not affected, they added.