HC asks MSRTC employees to consider problems of rural students

HC expressed hope that the MSRTC employees still on strike would consider the inconvenience being caused to 12 lakh students in rural areas and resume duty as a court appointed three-member committee looked to resolve the significant issues raised by them

Mumbai: The Bombay high court (HC) on Monday expressed hope that the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) employees still on strike would consider the inconvenience being caused to 12 lakh students in rural areas and resume duty as a court appointed three-member committee looked to resolve the significant issues raised by them.

HC expressed hope that the MSRTC employees still on strike would consider the inconvenience being caused to 12 lakh students in rural areas and resume duty as a court appointed three-member committee looked to resolve the significant issues raised by them (HT PHOTO)

Since October 27, 96,000 employees of MSRTC across Maharashtra have been on strike, seeking a merger of the cash-strapped body with the state government — a move that the state transport minister Anil Parab has said would need consideration and time. After the state moved court asking the employees to end their strike, the HC on November 8 directed the state to form a committee that would look into the employees’ grievances.

The HC on Monday was informed that while the committee had managed to get the issue of payables and dues ironed out, it was yet to consider the issue of merger. The committee said it hoped to arrive at an amicable solution within the three-month deadline given by court.

The division bench of justice Prasanna Varale and justice S M Modak was hearing the writ petition and contempt petition filed by the MSRTC and the interim applications filed by the employees.

Advocate S C Naidu representing the state submitted that the wages of the employees had been hiked based on their employment with the corporation and the dues till the month of November had been paid. A few weeks ago, the government announced that it will hike the salaries by 41% and raise the basic pay of all employees. However, thousands of employees are still agitating over the issue of merger, which they hope will be a permanent solution to payment delays and permit greater job security.

Advocate S U Kamdar, representing MSRTC, while responding to a query of the court on whether the employees had resumed duty submitted that only 3,000 employees had resumed duty and out of the 13,000 rounds a day (plying between start-point and destination), the corporation was able to complete only 2,500. As a result, commuters especially from the rural areas were suffering and were getting fleeced by private service providers.

“We are expecting the committee to give a commitment on when they will hear our demand for merger of MSRTC employees with state government employees,” advocate Gunaratan Sadavarte, representing the employees said.

He added that the issue of employee suicide on account of non-payment of salaries before the strike also needed to be addressed, and the number now stood at 54. He said that the court needed to ensure the welfare of the employees too.

After hearing the submissions the court said that as per news reports, students were suffering due to lack of the cheapest mode of transport and asked Sadavarte whether he was cognizant of the suffering of the students community. The bench added the issue needed to be argued more and posted hearing to December 22.