Horse racing at the Royal Calcutta Turf Club (RCTC), which came to a halt from February 8, is expected to resume in a fortnight.

There is no official communication from the RCTC but going by the mood of the stable workforce and smiling faces of trainers and horse owners, the impasse seems to have ended.

It has been learnt that a meeting between the RCTC stewards, trainers and the striking stable hands on Thursday broke the ice.

The syces’ society and unions have agreed to resume duties after they were promised that the modalities to clear their dues would be worked out in the next three days.

Horses would now be attended to, rolled and taken out for the morning exercises. The RCTC, according to sources, has also promised the trainers that all remaining fixtures will be completed even if the season gets extended till April.

Reason to strike

The striking syces and working hands had accepted a 30 per cent salary cut from April last year because of the pandemic. They were told status quo would be restored from this month. That was not done, and the syces first protested. When that fell on deaf ears, they decided to stop work from February 8.

Horse owners and trainers, who bore the brunt, had appealed to the striking workers but they were not in a mood to budge.

Thursday’s meeting, however, paves the way for the return of live action.