Trade union strike partially affects normal life in Bengal
Normal life was partiallyaffected in parts of West Bengal on Thursday due to thenationwide strike called by several trade unions in protestagainst the Centres economic policies.
The 24-hour bandh called by a joint committee of thecentral trade unions began at 6 am.
Bandh supporters, mostly activists of CPI(M)-affiliated outfits like CITU and DYFI, brought out rallies inJadavpur, Garia, Kamalgazi, Lake Town and Dumdum areas in andaround Kolkata, disrupting vehicular movement and askingshopkeepers to pull down the shutters of their establishments,an official said.
They picketed outside Howrah railway station, askingvehicle operators to stop services but a large policecontingent was deployed to ensure normal plying of vehicles,he said.
Bandh enforcers also blocked roads in Coochbehar andJhargram districts, burning tyres and breaking the windscreenof buses, the official said.
Train services were affected in Sealdah South and Mainsections as agitators put logs on railway tracks, he said.
Flight services at Netaji Subhas Chandra BoseInternational Airport here, however, have remained unaffectedso far, the official said.
“People are supporting our peaceful protests as it isin their interests,” a Democratic Youth Federation of India(DYFI) activist in Howrah said.
The ruling Trinamool Congress in the state did notsupport the strike but said it backed the Left and Congressflagging of the economic issues.
The agitating central trade unions, along withindependent federations and associations, expect theparticipation of 25 crore workers in the strike.
Trade unions like Indian National Trade Union Congress(INTUC), All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), Hind MazdoorSabha (HMS), Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), All IndiaUnited Trade Union Centre (AIUTUC), Trade Union Co-ordinationCentre (TUCC) and Self-Employed Womens Association (SEWA) arepart of the strike.
BJP-aligned Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), however, isnot participating in the strike.
The strike has been called to protest the new farm andlabour laws and also to raise various demands, a statementissued by the trade unions said.
Workers in the unorganised sector have also decided tohit the streets to enforce chakka jam, it said.
Trade unions affiliated to the Left parties and theCongress had taken out several rallies in Kolkata in the lastfew days in support of the strike.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Federal staff and is auto-published from a syndicated feed.)
