As city life lurched back to normal on the second day of the 48-hour general strike, with buses and autos back on the road, thousands of workers across occupations participated in a rally from the Town Hall to the Raj Bhavan.
Small and large industrial units remained shut for the second consecutive day, while government offices saw thin attendance. Compared to Wednesday, most markets were active and since public transport was back in action, most private offices saw full attendance. Barring a few private institutions that had announced a two-day holiday, schools and colleges functioned on Thursday.
Both the BMTC and KSRTC resumed operations on a “nearly regular scale”, both unionists and transport management confirmed. It was business as usual at IT offices, where even those that had declared holiday in advance asked employees on Wednesday night to report to work.
At the large rally, union leaders from different parties spoke about the main demands. H.V. Anantha Subbarao, State committee secretary, AITUC, said: “It was really heartening to see all workers units across political affiliations. Whether it is the Congress-backed INTUC, or BJP-backed Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, unions were vocal in criticising the neoliberal policies of the parties they are affiliated to.”
