Punjab: Punjab Roadways, Punbus and PRTC Contract Workers Union have called off their three-day strike after Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann assured them of a meeting on January 15. The strike began on Monday with around 7,500 contract workers participating in it, affecting around 2,800 buses. Their main demands include regularisation of jobs, wage hike and other employment benefits. In a statement issued from the Patiala headquarters of Punjab Roadways Transport Corporation (PRTC), chairman Ranjodh Singh Hadana confirmed that the strike has been called off.
All routes will be fully operational on Wednesday, he said. Rejecting the union’s claims that more than 80 per cent services were affected due to the strike, Hadana said 60 per cent of buses were operated across Punjab during the strike as per the alternative arrangements made by PRTC. Hadana said buses were running on all major routes and regular routes, though service frequency was affected. The PRTC has a fleet of 1,150 buses, of which around 700 buses were operational during the strike. Responding to a question about the financial losses, Hadana said the data was still being compiled.
