Hyderabad: Employees of the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation have announced a statewide strike beginning April 22, according to the Joint Action Committee (JAC) representing the workforce. The decision was made after the employees claimed that neither the govt nor the RTC management responded to their strike notice issued on March 13.JAC general secretary Thomas Reddy stated that the employees submitted a list of 32 demands. The primary demands include merging the RTC with the state govt, conducting labour union elections, and ensuring that salaries and benefits are on par with those of govt employees. The employees are also seeking implementation of long-pending wage revisions and clearance of dues such as provident fund contributions and Credit Cooperative Society payments.The proposed strike is expected to significantly impact public transport across Telangana. More than 6,000 buses may be taken off the roads, potentially affecting over 60 lakh passengers who rely on RTC services daily.Meanwhile, transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar has urged employees to reconsider the strike. He stated that the issue of merging TGSRTC with the govt is currently under review by a committee. He also assured that the govt is willing to discuss most of the demands, except for two unresolved matters, and emphasised that employee-related concerns would be addressed.The minister further noted that the pending Dearness Allowance (DA) has already been released, and discussions regarding the Pay Revision Commission (PRC) are ongoing. However, the employees insisted that the govt must fulfil promises made during the election period, including job security, wage revisions, and procurement of electric buses for the RTC.Last year in May, the JAC postponed a similar strike after the govt agreed to form a three-member IAS committee to examine their demands. However, with no resolution since then, the employees have decided to proceed with the strike, warning of disruption if their concerns are not addressed. The strike is expected to impact public transport across Telangana. Over 6,000 buses may be taken off the roads, affecting over 60 lakh passengers who rely on RTC services
