RTC employees held outside T’gana depots

HYDERABAD: A day after the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) Joint Action Committee (JAC) leaders called off their 52-days long strike, the police allegedly detained hundreds of employees who had reached the depots to resume work early on Tuesday.

“We are finding it difficult to pay school and college fees (of children),” news agency PTI quoted a woman conductor as saying. “We appeal to the CM sir to take us back for duty,” said another.

Police said hundreds of employees, including scores of women employees, were taken into preventive custody near bus depots in various districts across the state on Tuesday. Security was tightened near bus depots and bus stands in the state to prevent any untoward incidents, they said. RTC officials were not immediately available for comment on the situation following the strike’s withdrawal.

A release from the chief minister’s office said the Telangana cabinet would meet on November 28 and 29 here to discuss issues relating to RTC employees and others.

The government’s announcement came a day after the TSRTC employees’ unions called off their two-month old strike on Monday. “The two-day cabinet meeting will discuss at length on the measures to be taken to end the RTC impasse in the state,” it said.

The RTC said in a release that it was trying, not only to improve alternative measures for passengers, but continue work in offices with limited staff. The release said 6,475 buses were operated with 11,055 temporary staff in 11 regions of the Corporation.