Hyderabad, Nov.26 (NSS): The State Cabinet meeting will be held here at Pragati Bhavan on November 28 at 2 pm. There is a possibility of the Cabinet meeting may extend to Friday. The on-going RTC issue will be discussed prominently among other issues at the Cabinet meeting. The two-day Cabinet meeting will discuss at length on the measures to be taken to end the RTC impasse in the State.
Meanwhile, hundreds of TSRTC drivers and conductors were arrested by the police when they attempted to barge into RTC depots across the State to rejoin duty on Tuesday. The RTC workers’ attempts come in the wake of the JAC calling off the 52-day old strike on Monday and asking the employees to report for duty on Tuesday.
Elaborate security arrangements were made near all the depots with police barricading the areas and allowing only the temporary drivers and conductors to enter the depots after checking their identity cards. Police also imposed prohibitory order under Section 144 CrPC near all the depots. The striking workers came in hordes right from 6am in the morning, but were not allowed to enter the depots by the police.
The TSRTC management on Monday dismissed the JAC’s decision to call off the strike and asking the employees to return to their jobs as ridiculous. The RTC Managing Director Sunil Sharma had pointed out that existing laws and rules do not permit the corporation to take back the striking workers who took a unilateral decision to go on strike.
“The RTC JAC can’t take decisions based on whims and fancies. The strike is illegal and the government will follow the directives issued by Telangana High Court to refer the issue to the Labour Commissioner for resolution. Till the Labour Commissioner takes a decision on the strike, everyone should exercise restraint and not break the laws,” Sharma said, and warned the workers of stringent action if they attempted to disrupt the RTC operations. (NSS)
