Transport workers strike cripples bus services for third consecutive day in Tamil Nadu
Transport workers abstain from works defying a Madras high court order.
Bus services in Tamil Nadu continue to remain paralysed for the third consecutive day on Saturday despite a court order against the flash strike by the transport workers and government’s frantic efforts to make alternative arrangements.
The state’s AIADMK government hired temporary drivers and roped in private bus service operators. The government has also advertised posts of temporary drivers. Anyone who is a Class 10th pass and possesses a valid driving license is eligible for the job.
The efforts, however, proved too little, and at least in one case fraught with danger.
A temporary driver roped in to fill in for striking road transport corporation bus operator in Tirupur rammed the vehicle into a house. Fortunately, there was no passenger in the bus and the occupants of the house also escaped unhurt.
The striking unions, immediately grabbed the opportunity to take a pot shot at the government’s move.
“This is what you get when you just bring anyone to drive a bus, which is a specialised job,” said C. Muthukumaran, a driver working with the PTC in Chennai, on the incident.
Muthukumaran is among the thousands of transport workers who are on an indefinite strike since Thursday evening over the issue of higher wages.
The situation though was little better on Saturday, in the state capital Chennai almost half of the fleet was still off the road while in many other cities and towns the service was completely crippled, causing immense hardship to commuters.
According to a government estimate, in Chennai 53% buses were plying, in Nilgiri it was 40%, in Tirupur and Kanyakumari 30% buses were on the road.
The Madras High Court on Friday directed the striking unions to withdraw the strike immediately or face action. But the workers defied the court orders and carried on with their agitation.
Transport union leaders said they will challenge the court order, which they said is one-sided as they were not heard.
“The high court order did not give a chance to us to explain our stance. We will challenge the order once we get a copy of it,” said A Soundararajan, president Tamil Nadu State Transport Employees Federation and CITU leader.
The agitating unions have been demanding a 2.57% hike in wages. Transport minister M R Vijayabhaskar said the government agreed to enhance the wage by 2.44%. A few unions agreed to the deal given by the government and desisted from joining the strike. The hike will cost the state government Rs 1000 crore per annum.
Vijayabhaskar appealed to striking employees to return to work.
“I appeal to employees to come back for duty, honorable court has also asked them to come back,” Vijayabhaskar said addressing media at Karur.
He also threatened the workers with dire consequences if they did not return to work immediately.
Meanwhile, another minister KC Veeramani gave a dressing down to policemen on the streets for allegedly not taking action against agitating employees who were preventing others from joining works.
“Why are you not taking action against them,” the minister was seen asking haughtily to policemen.
A driver who had returned to work at Manparai near Tiruchirapalli, was pulled down from the bus and was draped in a sari by agitating workers.
DMK working president MK Stalin urged chief minister Edapaddi Palaniswami to end the imbroglio by holding talks with the unions and giving them a “good Pongal gift.”
Stalin spoke to the chief minister over phone and made this request.