Irked by the indifference on the part of the management of Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) to their indefinite strike which entered 15th day on Monday, daily wage employees and manpower agency workers of the tourism corporation resorted to ‘bhikshatana’ (seeking alms).
The 70-odd protestors left their strike camp and came out on to the main road, along with their families holding placards. They walked till the busy Kummaripalem Centre, stopped every passer-by and narrating their financial woes.
They said the meagre wages they were paid by the APTDC was far from adequate. When they insisted on a hike, the corporation officials showed them the door. The workers said since they had no means of livelihood, thanks to the APTDC apathy, they had landed on the footpath, and now had to resort to beggary to feed their family members.
As part of their action plan to stage novel protests until the management conceded their long-pending protests, the workers plan to don a new avatar on Tuesday tucking a flower in their ear and holding a begging bowl in their hand. “Tomorrow, it will be ‘Chevilo puvvu, chetilo chippa’. We are determined to continue the agitation until our fair demands are fulfilled. The management cannot gag us by arm-twisting tactics,” said State CITU leader Subhash Chandra Bose.
Termination orders
The corporation, meanwhile, issued termination orders to 580 protesting workers across the State.
Representatives of the protesting workers held a roundtable conference with leaders of various other unions on Sunday seeking their support for their cause.
“Leaders of various unions have promised to support us in our fight. If our demands are not conceded, we’ll be forced to intensify the stir by involving others also,” warned Mr. Bose.
