The workers are seeking settlement of their long-pending demands for revision of wages, liberalisation of allowances and other service benefits.

The talks held on Friday between the workers' union and the Bombay Customs House Agents' Association (BCHAA) failed to arrive at an amicable solution.The stir is likely to paralyse exports and imports as it is the CHA which is responsible for making arrangement for movement of cargo (obtaining custom clearance) on behalf of traders.

The workers are demanding incentives in the new settlement as the old settlement, dated July 4, 1994, expired on March 31, 1997. "We had forwarded a charter of demands to the BCHAA and all licensed CHAs in July last year but a settlement is yet to be arrived," All India Port & Dock Workers' Federation and Transport &Dock Workers' Union president SR Kulkarni said.

"We have held a series of meetings with the representatives of the employers' association but due to the recalcitrant attitude adopted by the office-bearers of the BCHAA, the settlement could not be reached," he alleged.

Kulkarni said the workers would go on an indefinite strike until a satisfactory settlement was reached by the employers. The workers had also held a mass rally here on Thursday as a preparation towards launching the strike.

There are around 1,200 licenced CHAs in the city. The contention of the BCHAA is that most of their members are not performing well owing to heavy competition in the market. Consequently, they will not be in a position to hike the wages.

Kulkarni, however, refuses to buy the argument. "The two ports (MBPT & JNPT) are slated to handle 11 lakh TEUs and even if we assume 50 per cent of the work goes to these CHAs, it is impossible to believe that they are not making profits", he added.