BHOPAL: As many as 8 lakh employees of BHEL, Railways, Post Office, BSNL, Banks, Income Tax, CPWD and others stood at par with the nationwide strike by 10 trade unions against privatisation and mergering of banks, in Bhopal on Wednesday.
Demonstration and march (procession) marked the strike in the state capital. Bankers demonstrated at Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC), Press Complex, impacting banking services in the region.
They also put up 12-point demands including minimum wage of Rs 21,000 and pension of Rs 10,000 among all departments.
The National Open Mass Convention of Workers organised by the ten Central Trade Unions namely INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF, UTUC, independent federations and associations of various sectors including some independent unions called for a nationwide general strike against the anti-worker, anti people, anti-national policies of the Modi-2 Government.
Western central Railways (WCR) Employees Union Philip Oommen said, “We have supported the strike on the basis of demands which are well justified. We hold demonstration to extend moral support to strike which was against central government anti-employees policies.”
INTUC (BHEL) president RD Tripathi said, “All the trade unions were on strike in BHEL in response to the nationwide strike call against central government anti-employees policies. It was big strike against union government.”
All India Postal Department Employees Association general secretary RN Parashar said, “It was successful nationwide strike against union government anti-employees policies especially economic policies. Employees from all the branches joined the strike.”
As per protesters, the national economy is slowing down. The adverse effects are already being felt by the workers in unorganised as well as organised sectors in the form of large scale retrenchment and closures. In the name of the recession, the Central Government is taking steps such as reducing corporate taxes, and giving them big bonanza from the national exchequer while not a single penny is spent to ensure job security or employment allowance to the workers.
