NEW DELHI, Nov 18: Within hours of deciding to withdraw its proposed agitation from November 21, the Air Traffic Controllers Guild did a virtual volte face saying it will go ahead with the stir as ``the minutes of discussion (with the government) were ``not in the right spirit''.

Earlier in the evening, the Air Traffic Control Officers (ATCOS) had called off their strike saying the government had accepted their demand for a substantial hike in their rating allowance which would cost the exchequer about Rs six crore annually.

However, later in the night, the Guild general secretary, Brijendra Shekhar, told PTI that the minutes of their discussion with the Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Jayanthi Natarajan and the Ministry Secretary, MK Kaw, did not reflect what had transpired at the meeting. ``Therefore, we are not calling off our proposed agitation,'' Shekhar said, adding ``we are trying to get in touch with the minister (who is out of station) and are likely to meet the secretary tomorrow.''

The minutes of the meeting were given to the guild by Airport Authority of India officials.

Soon after the meeting with the Guild in the evening, Natarajan had told PTI that the proposed agitation had been called off and the government had accepted the Julka Committee recommendations on rating allowance ``almost in toto''.

Meanwhile, there was no end to passengers' misery as several of them were kept waiting inside the aircraft for over two hours in various airlines waiting to get flight clearance as the ATCs' go-slow entered its 18th day today.

``This should be considered a criminal offence. There should be a government to enforce laws,'' said Ram Jethmalani, who arrived in IC-185 from Mumbai to Delhi after waiting in the aircraft for two hours before it took off from Mumbai. Before landing the aircraft was made to hover over the airport for 30 minutes before it was given clearance to land.

``I am here to attend a meeting and have reached here a day ahead of schedule as there is inconsistency in flight timings,'' said Prof R Harshe who arrived in IC-939 from Hyderabad which was delayed by two hours.

Another passenger, C P Rage, was searching for his driver after arriving two-and-half hours late in IC-806 from Mumbai.

There were many people waiting for hours outside the domestic arrival terminal at the Indira Gandhi International Aiprort.

``I felt claustrophobic sitting inside the aircraft at the runway in Mumbai and am now running fever,'' said 67-year-old Savitri Devi.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.