Over 6,000 buses could stay off Telangana roads from Wednesday as transport workers firm on strike

“The government, in its election manifesto, said all TSRTC employees will be integrated into the government, wage revisions will be made, unions will be revived, RTC will be developed in every way and new buses will be purchased. But even after 18 months of coming to power, the Congress party has not integrated the RTC employees into the government, and their problems have not been resolved,” K Hanumanthu Mudiraj, co-chairman of the JAC, said on Monday.

In response to the strike call, Ponnam Prabhakar recently assured the employees that the government was ready to discuss their demands and urged them to reconsider the strike in light of the corporation’s improving financial situation. Revanth Reddy has also appealed to the workers to call off the strike, stating that the RTC is beginning to make profits and that a strike would be detrimental to the organisation’s progress. He has also pointed out steps taken to clear some of the pending dues from the previous government.

“Giving statements in the press is one thing and officially inviting the JAC for talks is one. We have not received such invitations for talks from the government or the minister’s office. Our demands are genuine and the ball is in the court of the government,” said M Thomas Reddy, vice-chairman of the JAC, when contacted.

On Monday, the TGSRTC issued a statement appealing to its employees against participating in the strike. “Every rupee that the organization earns is being spent for your welfare. As you all know, despite financial difficulties, the management provided the long-pending 2017 PRC with a 21% fitment in May 2024. The 10 pending DAs from 2019 have been released in phases. ₹280 crore related to RPS-2013 bonds has been paid. For the past three and a half years, salaries have been paid on the 1st of every month without fail. PF and CCS recovery amounts are being paid regularly every month, and the management is gradually reducing the arrears,” the statement read.

Further, it added that the organisation prioritised the welfare of the employees despite the financial difficulties. “A strike at this juncture, when the organization is just recovering and moving on the path of development, will cause irreparable damage to the organization and the employees…Strikes are prohibited in RTC as per the ESMA Act. As per the rules of the organization, a strike is illegal. Legal action will be taken against those responsible for threatening employees or obstructing duties in the name of a strike,” the statement said, adding that the management was committed to resolving the problems of the employees with the cooperation of the state government.

Thomas Reddy responded that it has been three months since the JAC gave a strike notice to the TGSRTC management. “We were not called for a meeting. The labour commissioner called the management twice for a meeting with JAC and each time, the management did not respond. On May 1, the chief minister assured us that our grievances would be resolved. Neither the government nor the management has come forward yet. The transport minister’s office also has not invited us officially,” he said.

Reddy said the government should not hide behind excuses such as financial constraints to meet its electoral promises. “With no recruitment, the workload on employees has immensely increased. Instead of eight hours, employees are working 16 hours. There is no representation for workers due to lack of trade unions,” he said, adding that the JAC was still willing as well as waiting for official talks with the government.