The Indian Government has handed over 11 major ports to the Indian navy and territorial army, after an indefinite strike by port workers paralysed operations.

Thousands of workers in India's major ports have gone on strike to demand better pay, threatening the movement of cargo.

A BBC correspondent in the eastern city of Calcutta says naval units were seen taking control of the Calcutta port.

Non-technical operations were being handled by the territorial army, made up of military reserves.

The Indian Government said it was ready for talks with the workers' unions, but would not give in to what it described as blackmail.

The workers are demanding higher pay, rent allowance and a city allowance to help offset the cost of living in the bigger cities.

India's Transport Minister, Rajnath Singh, said if the demands were accepted it would increase the wage bill by more than 106%.

The government is only prepared to offer a 28% hike in pay.

Disruption

Officials said movement of general cargo had been hit by the strike but petroleum products were still being transported.

In Calcutta, police used canes and batons to break up a demonstration by striking workers outside the offices of the Calcutta Port Trust.

A spokesman for the Indian Navy in Calcutta told the BBC that they had been asked to take over operations in three major eastern ports - Calcutta, Haldia and Paradip.

In Delhi, the transport minister said the move was meant to help the movement of ships into berths and cargo operations.

"The navy has moved in and 50% of normal operations are on," Mr Singh said.

Indian ports handle about 684,000 tonnes of cargo daily. Recently, the government pledged to invest $4.1bn to develop major ports around the country.

"If the ongoing strike does not get resolved immediately, the country's target of over 11.3% export growth during the current fiscal year will be out of reach," Navratan Samdria of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations said.

Power crisis

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of electricity workers in Uttar Pradesh are striking against planned government reforms and privatisation efforts.

The strike has cut energy supplies to tens of millions of people in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh and threatens to spread to neighbouring regions.

Some 2,000 electricity workers have been arrested by the police out of nearly 100,000 taking part.