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Ludhiana: Roadways’ contractual employees protest, demand regularisation
Addressing the gathering, the union general secretary Shamsher Singh Dhillon criticised the Aam Aadmi Party government for failing to fulfil its promise of regularising all employees
Punjab Roadways Punbus PRTC Contract Workers’ Union held a rally at Ludhiana gate bus depot on Wednesday, demanding regularisation of their jobs and an end to the contractor system in the state’s transport department.
Addressing the gathering, the union general secretary Shamsher Singh Dhillon criticised the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government for failing to fulfil its promise of regularising all employees.
“Three years into its term, the government has not taken a single step to address our issues. Over 400 buses are lying non-operational but no new bus has been inducted into the feet in the last two years, and the contractor system continues to exploit workers who perform their duties in extremely overcrowded buses,” he said.
Dhillon pointed out that neighbouring states like Haryana and Himachal Pradesh have been regularising contractual employees, while Punjab has only offered excuses. “This is being used to delay action, while other states have no such barriers,” he added.
Union leaders also highlighted the unmet assurances made by chief minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann during a July meeting held in Jalandhar, which assured raising wages, introducing departmental buses, and stopping privatization under the “kilometre scheme”.
The union has now announced a series of protests. On December 22, memorandums will be submitted to all MLAs, followed by gate rallies on January 2. A complete transport strike is planned from January 6 to 8, with a sit-in protest outside the CM’s residence from January 7.
“If our demands are not met, we will escalate our struggle,” said Jagtar Singh, joint secretary of the union.
