Chandigarh, Mar 28 (PTI) Public transport services were affected in Haryana on Monday as the Roadways employees joined the two-day nationwide strike call given by a joint forum of the central trade unions to protest against the Centre’s alleged wrong policies that are affecting farmers, workers and the general public.
Commuters had to face a tough time as the bus services remained suspended at several depots of Haryana Roadways.
The roadways employees held protests at many depots in the state as part of the strike.
Sarbat Singh Punia, a leader of the joint front of 10 unions of roadways employees, said that “in all the depots bus services are suspended”.
“Only a few buses, which are run under the kilometre scheme, were operated in the morning in Narnaul, Jhajjar and Chandigarh depots. Our roadways employees are observing a complete strike,” he said.
He also alleged that the BJP led Haryana government was not strengthening the Haryana Roadways fleet.
“This indicates their intent to promote privatisation of the transport services. There were 4,200 buses in the Haryana Roadways fleet about six years back, which have been reduced to 2,600 now and route permits are given to promote private buses. Haryana Roadways needs 10,000 buses in its fleet but the government is not paying heed,” he claimed.
In some districts, prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC were imposed to maintain law and order during the strike under which a ban has been imposed on the gathering of five or more persons in a 200-metre area of the bus stands, officials said.
Punia claimed that employees and workers of some other departments, including public sector banks and municipal bodies, are also participating in the nationwide strike.
Another Roadways employees union leader said that Samyukt Kisan Morcha had also extended their support to the strike.
Commuters faced inconvenience as public transport services were affected in Haryana.
“I had to travel from Charkhi Dadri to Loharu, but I did not find any bus,” said a woman commuter.
Meanwhile, public transport buses were plying normally in neighbouring Punjab, officials said.
“Our bus services are running normally in Punjab,” an official of the State Transport Department said.
Naresh Gaur, Deputy General Secretary of Punjab Bank Employees Federation, however, said the employees of nationalised bank joined the strike and the banking services remained affected in Punjab.
An elderly man said he had to carry out some urgent transactions from a nationalised bank in Hoshiarpur, but he was told to come after two days due to the strike.
In Hoshiarpur, several members of the central trade unions and their supporting organisations staged a sit-in and blocked vehicular traffic at local Maharaja Jassa Singh Ramgarhia Chowk for a few hours in support of the strike call.
Some public sector bank employees also observed the strike and staged a rally in front of the local circle office of Punjab National Bank in Hoshiarpur.
Some members of All India Postal Employees and Gramin Dak Sewak Union, Hoshiarpur, also observed a strike and staged a dharna in front of their respective main post offices at Hoshiarpur, Dasuya and Garhshankar towns.
In support of the strike call, some employees, including public sector bank staff, protested near Bharat Nagar Chowk in Ludhiana and raised slogans in favour of their demands.
Later, a protest rally was also organised outside the Mini Secretariat in Ludhiana. Central trade unions on Monday began a two-day nationwide strike to protest against the government’s alleged wrong policies.
A joint forum of central trade unions had given a call for a nationwide strike on March 28 and 29.
Their demands include the scrapping of the labour codes, no privatisation of any form, scrapping of the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP), increased allocation of wages under MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act) and regularisation of contract workers, among others.
The central trade unions that are part of this joint forum are INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC. PTI SUN VSD BAL
