Hyderabad, April 24 The indefinite strike by the employees of state-owned Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) entered the third day on Friday even as the Cabinet sub-committee is scheduled to hold talks with the leaders of striking employees later in the day.
For the third day, majority of the buses remained confined to depots as about 40,000 employees stayed away from duties across the state.
Meanwhile, the death of a RTC driver, who set himself ablaze during a protest in Warangal district on Thursday, is likely to further intensify the protest.
Shankar Goud (55), who had sustained 80 per cent burns, succumbed at Apollo DRDO Hospital in Hyderabad early on Friday morning.
Tension prevailed at Muthojipet when police foiled attempts by RTC employees to shift the body of Goud to Narsampet Depot, where he set himself afire during the protest by striking employees.
Leaders of Opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) came out in support of the employees trying to shift the body to the depot. A scuffle broke out between the police and the protestors.
Police detained BRS leader and former MLA, Peddi Sudershan Reddy and shifted him to the police station.
Police have stepped up security at RTC depots across the state to prevent any incident like the one that occurred at Narsampet. A couple of other RTC employees also tried to set themselves ablaze on Thursday but other employees and police foiled their attempt.
Meanwhile, the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the RTC employees held an emergency meeting following the death of Shankar Goud and ahead of the talks with the government.
Public road transport services have been affected for the third day across the state and commuters are facing severe inconvenience. Government and private employees, students and daily wage workers are the worst affected.
The TGSRTC claims to be running partial services by deploying hired, private and electric buses.
Few buses were being operated from Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station (MGBS) and Jubilee Bus Station (JBS) in Hyderabad. Buses to the neighbouring states like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra were being operated from MGBS.
The continuing strike by RTC employees led to huge rush in Metro and MMTS trains.
A Cabinet sub-committee led by Deputy Chief Minister, Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, is scheduled to hold talks with JAC leaders.
The State Cabinet, which met on Thursday evening, appealed to the RTC employees to call off the strike and maintain restraint. It assured that the government is sincere about resolving issues through dialogue.
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