Chandigarh: Bansal slams UT over long-serving contract staff terminations

Over the past few days, many of these experienced workers have reportedly been issued notices asking them to stop reporting for duty—effectively terminating their services

Former Union minister Pawan Kumar Bansal has raised strong objections to the Chandigarh administration’s recent move to discontinue the services of long-serving contractual employees across various departments, particularly in the Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU).

Bansal urged the UT administrator to immediately stop the removal of these workers. (HT Photo)

In a letter to UT administrator Gulab Chand Kataria, Bansal highlighted that a large number of employees have been working on contract for several years in different wings of the administration. The situation, he said, is especially alarming in CTU, where several drivers and conductors have served for 10 to 15 years or more. Despite performing the same duties as regular employees, they continue to receive significantly lower salaries and limited benefits.

Over the past few days, many of these experienced workers have reportedly been issued notices asking them to stop reporting for duty—effectively terminating their services. According to Bansal, the move appears linked to the administration’s decision to hand over the operations of the newly procured fleet of 428 electric buses to the manufacturers or suppliers.

Bansal argued that bus manufacturers are typically responsible only for warranty-related issues, not for running public transport services. Handing over operations to private companies, he said, marks an unprecedented shift and amounts to the “privatisation” of CTU, even though the administration itself has borne the capital cost of purchasing the buses.

He further underscored the serious injustice faced by the affected employees, many of whom are now above 35 years of age—beyond the eligibility limit for fresh government recruitment. Seeking re-employment with the bus manufacturers would force them to accept even lower wages for the same duties they have performed with commitment for years.

Bansal urged the UT administrator to immediately stop the removal of these workers and ensure that CTU’s experienced staff—who have long served the department and identify deeply with it—are retained to operate the new electric bus fleet.