The 13th day of Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) employees’ strike was marked by Vanta Varpu (cooking), Bathukamma and sports competitions at bus depots sending across a strong message that they would not end strike till their demands were met.
The Left parties and civil society organisations held protest demonstrations expressing solidarity with the TSRTC Joint Action Committee’s call for State-wide bandh on October 19.
The RTC employees at Ranigunj Bus Depot organised Bathukamma and Kabadi, and cooked food and had lunch there. Apart from cooking and serving lunch, the corporation drivers, conductors and staff organised Dhoom-Dham at HCU Bus Depot on Thursday afternoon.
They would continue their protest on Friday in different ways, including taking out bike rallies. “A bike rally would be organised from HCU and BHEL Depots to Lingampally. From there on, the rally will head towards Miyapur,” said Shaik Abdul, a member of the JAC.
The protesting employees questioned the efficiency of temporary staff, who have been appointed drivers to RTC buses. They said if people with no experience are made to drive buses, the chances of accidents would go up.
Speaking at a protest held at Dharna Chowk on Thursday, Communist Party of India (CPI) State secretary Chada Venkat Reddy demanded that the Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao hold talks with the JAC members immediately and find a solution to the impasse. “Else, the RTC employees are ready to protest indefinitely,” Mr. Reddy said. Speaking to media personnel at Telangana Mazdoor Union (TMU) office on Thursday, the TSRTC JAC leader, Ashwathama Reddy, said they would continue to fight for their rights as well as to save the corporation. He said leaders from different political parties were calling him to express regret over the current situation. Meanwhile, people at large continued to face inconvenience as they had to shell out more money when compared to the usual amount to commute.
Taxi and drivers’ bandh
Chairman of the Telangana State Taxi and Drivers’ JAC, Shaik Salauddin, claimed that 50,000 cab drivers would launch an indefinite strike against taxi aggregators from October 19. He demanded better work standards by charging a minimum fare of ₹22 per km.
“The number of cabs attached to an aggregator should be limited to guarantee minimum business to all drivers. Ensure KYC approval for customers to tackle cases of assaults on drivers. Reinstate off boarded drivers,” he said. Mr Salauddin said they have served the strike notice to taxi aggregators.
