97 per cent South Central Railway staff vote for strike

Hyderabad: As many as 97.61 per cent of the 67,749 non-gazetted employees of South Central Railway voted in favour of going on strike to press for their pending demands.

SCR Mazdoor Union general secretary Ch. Sankara Rao said the ballot was conducted in all the 17 railway zones on February 11 and 12.

“After nearly 42 years, there is all likelihood of trains being brought to a halt in the country. It was in 1974 that such a strike took place for seven days,” Mr Rao said.

The National Joint Council of Associations, comprising unions from railways, defence, audit, postal and other Central government departments, will serve a strike notice on March 11 and go on strike after one month, from 6 am on April 11, Mr Rao said.

The strike can be averted if the Centre concedes their demands before March 11, he said.

The main demands of the NJCA include increase in basic pay of Group-D employees from Rs 15,750 per month, including DA, to Rs 26,000 per month, correcting the injustice done to the technical and safety category of staff while granting pay scales in the 7th CPC, grant of pensions as per the old pension scheme by scrapping the new one, filling of all vacant posts, withdrawing the Cabinet decision on FDI and public-private partnership in the railways and defence, stopping amendments to labour reforms and improving pay scales of railway running staff, trackman, among others.