15,000 TN buses on strike today over pay scale revision, commuters hit
The workers of the transport department have been demanding for a pay scale revision to Rs 30,000.
Rameswaram (Tamil Nadu): An indefinite strike called by the state transport workers' unions in Tamil Nadu has left scores of commuters stranded in various parts of the state.
A large number of people were seen queued up waiting for the private buses at the different bus stops.
The strike, following the failure of talks on wage revision and clearance of pending dues with Transport Minister MR Vijayabhaskar, was declared on Thursday.
Of the 46 unions that participated in the final round of talks chaired by transport minister, M.R.Vijayabhaskar, held at Chromepet, 13 major unions including Labour Progressive Federation (LPF), Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS) and All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) came out with the strike announcement.
Drivers and conductors of various state transport corporations went on a sudden strike from midnight.
Tamil Nadu has a fleet of 22,500 buses, with 1.4 lakh workers in the state's employment. Friday's strike has taken about 15,000 buses off the roads in Tamil Nadu, an NDTV report said.
"I have been waiting for a few hours now, but the bus is not running. The auto fare is so high, I cannot afford it. So I have called my brother to pick me up", said Deepika, one of the commuters.
The striking employees of state transport have been insisting for a pay scale revision to Rs 30,000. However, the authorities have agreed in principle to pay only 24,400, which the employees feel is a great injustice for the workers who deal with severe traffic and stress on a daily basis.