Bengaluru: As the bypolls have concluded on Saturday, pressure is mounting on Karnataka State Road Transport Employees’ League to end the strike which they began on April 7 demanding a pay hike.
The strike will enter its 12th day on Sunday. As compared to Friday, four State Transport Undertakings (STUs) operated 7,031 buses: KSRTC (3,339), BMTC (1,155), NEKRTC (1,356) and NWKRTC (1,181) on Saturday. “The number of employees reporting for duty is increasing by the day. We will operate maximum buses from Monday”, said a transport department official.
Many employees fear the stringent actions that the government is likely to take as the byelections are over. Moreover, there are no signs of negotiations as the chief minister BS Yediyurappa was tested Covid-positive and was hospitalised. In the meantime, deputy CM and transport minister Laxman Savadi said that he is under quarantine as his gunman was found to have caught the infection.
Upset over driver’s death
Staffers are anxious after a 59-year-old NWKRTC driver died in the stone-pelting incident in Bagalkot on Friday.
A BMTC conductor said, “The government is not ready to revise salaries as per the 6th Pay Commission. We should have asked for a 20% hike so that the government would have settled for at least 15%. It is not bothered about protests. We’ve seen this during the farmers’ agitations. We are yet to get March salaries. Many of us cannot afford to continue the stir.”
Some are of the view that the strike is untimely. A BMTC staffer said, “We are receiving communication from the union through social media. But our protest is not getting visibility due to Covid-19. Earlier, we could gather at Freedom Park but now, there are restrictions.”
Some commuters say that they are unhappy with the strike which the transport employees began during the pandemic. Many regular passengers are facing a pay cut during this period and they are forced to spend more money on private buses.
According to the statistics, 90 buses, including KSRTC (54), BMTC (6), NWKRTC (7) and NEKRTC (23) have been damaged. This is the first time that so many premium AC buses are targeted.
A KSRTC driver who joined the duty on Saturday said, “Many employees are unhappy after the NWKRTC driver died. Some of our premium buses have been damaged. Only non-AC buses were damaged during previous strikes. The government may take action against us since the bypolls are over. Where will we get another job during Covid times?”.
A senior office-bearer expressed that they are under pressure to end the strike. The office-bearer asked, “Only emergency passengers are travelling now because of increasing Covid cases. But the government allowed all private operators to ply, even without permits, to fill the gap. We also want to end this strike but the government is not coming forward for talks. They dismissed, suspended and transferred more than 5,000 employees. How will we call off the stir without getting any assurance from the government?”. The government is of the view that negotiations will be held only after the employees return for duty.
Around 2,433 BMTC employees were suspended on Saturday.
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