2-day nationwide strike begins; unions claim 'entire coal belt hit'

The two-day nationwide strike, called by a joint forum of central trade unions, has begun across the country. Some of the essential services related to banking, transportation, railways and electricity are affected during the 48-hour strike.

Talking to PTI, Amarjeet Kaur, general secretary of All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), said, “The entire coal belt (mining area) is affected in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. There is a good response in industrial areas of Assam, Haryana, Delhi, West Bengal, Telangana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Bihar, Punjab, Rajasthan, Goa and Odisha.

The AITUC official noted that the banks and insurance sectors are affected all over India, while steel and oil sectors are also seeing partial impact due to the strike.

The unions’ demands include the scrapping of the proposed changes in labour laws, privatisation of any form and the national monetisation pipeline. Increased allocation of wages under MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act) and regularisation of contract workers are also part of their demands.

Workers of roadways, transport and electricity departments have also decided to join the strike in spite of the impending threat of ESMA (Essential Services Maintenance Act) which is likely to be imposed in Haryana and Chandigarh, the joint forum said in a statement.

Trade unions, including INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC are part of the joint forum.

Meanwhile, the power ministry on Sunday advised all the state-run utilities and other agencies to be on high alert and ensure round-the-clock electricity supply and stability of the national grid.

The advisory has been issued to all states, central public sector undertakings, central electricity authority, national load dispatch centre and regional load dispatch centres. In the interest of the consumers of electricity, it is advised that all the power utilities shall take necessary measures to ensure round-the-clock functioning of the electricity grid and availability of all plants, transmission lines and substations, the ministry said, adding that all regional/state control room executives should be vigilant and on high alert.

The ministry also suggested measures to be taken to ensure secure and reliable grid operations. Shutdown activities planned during March 28-29 may be rescheduled to suitable future dates to the extent possible, it said and asked all concerned officials to ensure close supervision of their regional network/control area.

Bank employee’s unions said they will support the strike. All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) General Secretary C H Venkatachalam said the union demands the government to stop privatisation of public sector banks and strengthen them.

Bank employees also demand speedy recovery of bad loans, higher deposit rates by banks, lower service charges on customers as well as restoration of old pension scheme for staff.

A number of public sector banks, including country’s largest lender SBI, have said that their services may get impacted to a limited extent due to the strike. SBI said it has made necessary arrangements to ensure normal functioning in its branches and offices during the strike. “It is likely that work at our bank may be impacted, to a limited extent, by the strike,” SBI said.

(With inputs from Agencies)