Strike hits Indian's operations in Bangalore

A snap strike by a section of Indian employees affects 50 per cent of the airline's operations in Bangalore.

A snap strike by a section of Indian employees on Wednesday affected 50 per cent of the airline's operations in Bangalore, leading to long delays, cancellations and combining of flights to some destinations, an official said.

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With about 300 of the 520 Indian employees, affiliated to the Air Corporation Employees Union (ACEU) joining the nationwide strike, departure and arrival of the state-owned domestic carrier's flights to 16 destinations were disrupted.

"As against 16-18 flights during the day, eight to 10 flights took off since morning till evening. As only a section of the ground and support staff is on strike, the services have been rescheduled to ensure passengers are not stranded or put to hardship," an Indian spokesman told IANS from the airport.

The strike has led to the cancellation of some flights to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad as corresponding flights from these destinations did not arrive.

"We have operated a combined flight each to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kochi. We hope to resume normal services by night, as talks are in progress in Delhi between the union and the top management to resolve the deadlock," the official said in the evening.

Indian's overseas operations to Singapore and the Maldives were not affected as its flights took off in the wee hours.

The strike forced several passengers to approach private carriers for a seat at the last minute.

"The last flight to Mumbai at 8.00 pm has been cancelled. If the strike continues, we may either cancel or combine the flights to prevent further delay to passengers," the official added.