YET ANOTHER STRIKE CATCHES STATE NAPPING

MNS-instigated ‘rail roko’ by railway apprentices sends local and long-distance services on CR for a toss

It was a usual morning on Central Railways when out of the blue hundreds of students appeared from nowhere, squatted on the tracks and sent suburban and long distance services for a toss.

The mayhem continued for more than three hours on the Dadar-Matunga stretch as RPF personnel stood watching from the side lines, twiddling their thumbs. The authorities had been caught napping yet again; just last week they had failed to anticipate the farmers’ stir.

What seemed to be an impromptu strike with no student leader in sight had been clearly planned in advance. Also some thought had gone into the concerted action which coincided with the Ola and Uber strike.

Among the squatters were 400 to 500 students from several states, who have done apprenticeship with the Indian Railways and want permanent jobs now.

Many of the commuters, who were stranded for hours in trains which bore the brunt of the agitation, later alighted from the coaches and were seen walking along the tracks. Some even took to the social media to express their woes.

The RPF and the Mumbai police had to finally use mild force to disperse the agitating students at Matunga. The protestors, in turn, retaliated by stoning them; 11 personnel of the GRP and RPF suffered injuries.

Meanwhile, behind the scene efforts were on to talk to the agitators and remove them from the tracks. All the four lines (the Up and Down fast and slow lines) were affected between Matunga and CSMT, said a senior CR official.

The students lamented that there had been no recruitment for the last four years and that they had been running from pillar to post.

CONTD. ON P7