A large number of workers and retired employees staged a demonstration in front of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) office at KTC Nagar here on Wednesday even as a team of officials from Chennai were present inside for auditing.
About 300 workers affiliated to various trade unions and retired employees gathered on the office premises where auditing was to be conducted by a team led by T. Prabhakara Rao, chairman, TNSTC. They also urged the officials to allow their representatives to meet Mr. Rao to air their grievances including non-disbursal of retirement benefits.
When they were not allowed to meet the officials, the agitated workers and retired personnel raised slogans. “Most of the workers pin their hopes only on retirement benefits to meet expenses for their wards’ marriage, medical bills and construction of house. The benefits have been withheld for the past four years. They must be disbursed without further delay,” they said.
Even as officials were pacifying them, a retired conductor of Papanasam depot, Kanthaiah Pandian, went to the top of the two-storey building and threatened to jump down if his retirement benefits were not settled immediately.
As the situation turned worse, the team from Chennai left the office without meeting the protesters.
According to P. Muthukrishnan, general secretary, CITU-TNSTC, Tirunelveli, gratuity (paid up to 2012), provident fund (paid up to February 2014), commutation (February 2013) and leave surrender (October 2011), all amounting to Rs. 110 crore, has to be paid to the workers.
“Retired driver Sundararajan of Shencottai depot had to sell his house Rs. 3 lakh lesser than the market value for meeting his daughter’s marriage expenses since the retirement benefits were not given. More than 2,200 persons are indefinitely waiting for their retirement benefits,” said Mr. Muthukrishnan.
As the situation turned worse, the team from Chennai left the office without meeting the protesters
