Maharashtra: Council asks state govt to resolve MSRTC strike soon

Maharashtra Legislative Council chairman Ramraje Nimbalkar on Tuesday suggested that the state transport minister must take steps to resolve the strike by employees of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC).

Nimbalkar issued the instructions after BJP legislators alleged that state transport minister Anil Parab had failed to resolve the deadlock with the MSRTC employees.

The MSRTC employees have been on strike since November last year, demanding the merger of the corporation with the state government, which will give them the status and benefits of government personnel.

Though the state government has increased the salaries of MSRTC employees, they have refused to accept the hike and demanded a merger.

During the discussion, Parab said a committee that was set up to probe the issue had stated in its report the merger of the MSRTC with the state government was not feasible.

“We are also of the same opinion. We cannot merge the corporation with the state government. We have made several appeals to the employees to return to work. Some have been terminated from work. If they want to get their jobs back, they have to submit a written appeal, which they have refused to do,” the minister said.

To this, Nimbalkar asked the state government to intervene. “The state government can set up a committee or invite employees and hold a joint meeting to solve the deadlock. It has been a long time and we should try to resolve the matter as soon as possible.” Parab further said that the MRSTC had incurred losses to the tune of Rs 1,740 crore, and 12,207 employees had been suspended from service, while termination letters were issued to 2,126.