Jalandhar: Punjab Roadways contract workers staged a state-wide protest in Jalandhar on Friday. They were demanding the regularization of long-serving employees and the removal of private buses introduced under the kilometer scheme. The protest was held outside the Punjab Roadways depot near the city’s Inter-State Bus Terminal under the banner of the Punjab Roadways, PUNBUS, and PRTC Contract Workers Union. The protesting workers also raised the issue of the continued detention of their union members, who were arrested in November during a protest against the kilometer scheme.
Emphasizing these concerns, the union’s state president, Resham Singh Gill, further stated that no new government buses have been added to the fleet in the last four years, while more than 500 buses have become unfit during this period. He also alleged that the department continues to recruit through outsourcing, while no contract workers have yet been regularized. State General Secretary Shamsher Singh Dhillon said that many workers have been working in the department for more than a decade through contract or outsourcing and have not yet been regularized. The union also announced that if their demands are not addressed, they will launch a relay hunger strike in Mohali on March 9, during the Punjab Assembly session.
Jalandhar: Roadways contract employees protest demanding regular jobs
