Commuters across Punjab, particularly women availing the free bus travel facility, faced inconvenience on Wednesday after contractual employees of the Punjab Roadways and Punbus launched a statewide strike against the induction of private buses under the kilometre scheme.
The services, however, began returning to normal in the evening after the strike was called following talks between union representatives and Transport Secretary Varun Roojam.
The strike was organised under the banner of the Punjab Roadways, Punbus and PRTC Contract Workers Union, Punjab.
Shamsher Singh Dhillon, general secretary of the union, said, “Nearly 1,400 Punjab Roadways and Punbus buses remained off the roads since Tuesday afternoon. The two departments together operate around 1,600 buses across 18 depots in Punjab. With nearly 90 per cent of the workforce being contractual and outsourced employees, bus services largely remained suspended during the strike.”
Preetpal Kaur, a passenger travelling to Pathankot, said, “It has been more than an hour since I arrived at the bus stand, but I have not been able to find a bus. The few buses that are operating are overcrowded and it is difficult to find a seats.”
Bikram Singh, president of the union at Jalandhar Depot-II, said the agitation was planned to be held from June 22 to 24, but was advanced after Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema flagged off five Volvo buses under the Punbus Kilometre Scheme in Chandigarh on Tuesday.
The union views the move as a step towards privatisation of the state-run transport sector. Union leaders alleged that despite repeatedly opposing the kilometre scheme during earlier meetings with the government and receiving assurances that their concerns would be considered, private buses continued to be inducted under the scheme.
The employees are also demanding regularisation of contractual and outsourced employees, implementation of equal pay for equal work, reinstatement of terminated workers, withdrawal of cases registered during previous protests and better welfare benefits. The union has further sought the release of 10 PRTC employees lodged in the Sangrur jail.
Harkesh Kumar Vicky, state vice president of the union said, “We have called off our strike and resumed the services following talks with Transport Secretary Varun Roojam.”
PRTC Chairman Harpal Juneja, however, said, “All our buses continued to ply throughout the day and services across routes and depots continued normally despite the strike.”
“During a meeting with PRTC contractual employees in Patiala, we assured them that their demand for regularisation would be taken up with the Transport Minister,” he added.
On the issue of jailed workers, Juneja said the matter was sub judice and that the management was extending full cooperation to the employees.
