Commuters stranded as 2,700 Punjab govt buses go off roads for three days
The Punjab Roadways PUNBUS/PRTC Contract Workers Union has announced a three-day strike.
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No government buses will operate across Punjab during the strike. (Express File) Starting today, nearly 2,700 of the 3,000 government buses operated by Punjab Roadways, PRTC, and PUNBUS will remain off the roads until January 8. This comes as the Punjab Roadways PUNBUS/PRTC Contract Workers Union has announced a three-day strike. The union claims that about 90% of employees in PUNBUS and PRTC are on a contract basis, and they are demanding the regularisation of their jobs.
The strike is expected to cause significant inconvenience to commuters, who will have to rely on private buses during this period. Protesters allege that the government has been ignoring their demands for regularisation.
According to Resham Singh Gill, president of the PUNBUS and PRTC Contract Workers Union, around 2,700 vehicles will be affected by the strike. He highlighted that neighbouring states like Haryana and Himachal Pradesh regularise employees after two years, whereas Punjab has failed to do so.
Union leaders also pointed out that despite providing uninterrupted services during the pandemic, floods, elections, and political rallies, their demands have been overlooked.
No government buses will operate across Punjab during the strike. State secretary Shamsher Singh Dhillon said repeated submissions of demand letters to the government have yielded no results.
The union acknowledged that the strike would inconvenience the public but maintained that it was left with no alternative to press for its demands. These demands include the regularisation of contract workers, the implementation of the “equal work, equal pay” formula as directed by the Supreme Court, and an increase in salaries. They also seek financial benefits under welfare schemes, group insurance, ESIC, and EPFO, which they claim are currently denied.
The union further alleged that families of deceased employees are not receiving their rightful benefits. It highlighted the issue of illegal salary deductions and demanded that such practices be stopped.
Other key demands include scrapping the kilometre private owner bus scheme, increasing the fleet of PUNBUS and PRTC buses to 10,000, curbing the transport mafia at bus stands and state gates, reinstating dismissed employees, abolishing blacklists, and ensuring no unjust terminations.
Union members said these issues were raised with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann during a meeting in July last year, where he promised a resolution within a month. However, no action has been taken, prompting the union to resort to the strike.
The union also criticised the government for providing free bus services for women without offering financial grants to PRTC and PUNBUS. This, they said, has led to a lack of spare parts and delayed salaries. The limited number of operational buses has resulted in overcrowding, causing major accidents.
Meanwhile, around 10% of government buses in the state are being operated by regular employees of PUNBUS and PRTC.
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