Over 300 BEST bus conductors protest at Mumbai’s Wadala depot

300 bus conductors with the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply Transport (BEST)  staged a protest at Wadala depot in Mumbai at 3pm Tuesday against the transport authority’s latest ‘diktat’ on ticket dispensing machines, the workers’ union has informed.

BEST Workers’ Union leader Shashank Rao said it is a symbolic protest against a new rule of the authority as per which the salaries of conductors will be cut if the ticket dispensing machine gets damaged. “It is improper to cut salaries of employees. The machine may face technical problems and may not work properly. In such cases, salaries of employees will get cut. It will be unfair and hence the protest,” he pointed out.

BEST Workers’ Union leader Shashank Rao said it is a symbolic protest against a new rule of the authority as per which the salaries of conductors will be cut if the ticket dispensing machine gets damaged. “It is improper to cut salaries of employees. The machine may face technical problems and may not work properly. In such cases, salaries of employees will get cut. It will be unfair and hence the protest,” he pointed out.

The transport authority has issued a notification with 15 reasons on the basis of which it can cut employees’ salaries if the machine gets damaged. An amount ranging from Rs 490 to Rs 4,737 will be levied from employees, including Rs 506 for the speaker, Rs 538 for USB cable, Rs 1,582 for back body cover and Rs 1,105 for battery cover. In the notification issued on October 3, BEST has asked employees to take proper care of the electronic (ET) machine