BEST Bus Strike Called Off After Talks With Shinde
The Maharashtra government had intensified efforts to end the strike, which entered its third day on Sunday and severely disrupted public transport services across Mumbai.
Mumbai: The indefinite strike by employees of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking was withdrawn late on Sunday after a marathon meeting between Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik and representatives of the BEST Sanyukt Kamgar Kruti Samiti at the Sahyadri Guest House in Mumbai.
The meeting, which began around 8.15 p.m., concluded shortly after 10 p.m. following nearly two hours of discussions aimed at resolving the deadlock over the employees' long-pending demands.
Officials said the talks were positive and it was decided that BEST bus services would resume from Sunday night. The government emphasised that lakhs of Mumbai commuters depend on BEST services for their daily travel.
Addressing reporters after the meeting, Mr. Shinde said he had remained in constant touch with union leader Sachin Ahir and Mr. Sarnaik during the negotiations. He announced that gratuity dues of employees would be cleared during the current financial year.
To reduce operational losses, the undertaking would increase the proportion of BEST-owned buses in its fleet, he said. “The BEST undertaking will procure 5,000 electric buses over the next three years,” Mr. Shinde said, adding that efforts would also be made to augment revenue.
The Deputy Chief Minister said employee welfare measures and basic facilities would be strengthened. He also announced interim financial relief, stating that BEST employees would receive an interim monthly salary increase of Rs 3,000, while wet-lease employees would get Rs 2,000 per month.
He said the remaining demands raised by employees would be discussed and addressed within the next fortnight.
Mr. Ahir, meanwhile, demanded the withdrawal of notices issued under the Maharashtra Essential Services Maintenance Act (MESMA) against employees who participated in the strike.
The meeting was attended by representatives of the BEST Sanyukt Kamgar Kruti Samiti, an umbrella body of 12 unions, along with senior government officials, including Urban Development Department Additional Chief Secretary Aseem Gupta, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation Commissioner Ashwini Bhide and BEST General Manager Sonia Sethi.
The Maharashtra government had intensified efforts to end the strike, which entered its third day on Sunday and severely disrupted public transport services across Mumbai. Thousands of commuters were affected by the near-complete shutdown of BEST bus operations.
To minimise inconvenience, BEST deployed 65 buses hired from the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) for candidates appearing for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), while an additional 95 MSRTC buses operated on city routes for regular commuters.
The strike, which began at midnight on June 18, was called by the BEST Sanyukt Kamgar Kruti Samiti after talks with the administration failed to produce a breakthrough. The unions' key demands included merging the BMC's dedicated ‘C’ budget for BEST with its main ‘A’ budget, settlement of pending dues of retired employees, reducing dependence on contractual bus operators and regularising wet-lease workers through their absorption into the BEST workforce.
Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis termed the agitation an illegal strike and expressed confidence that the issue would be resolved through dialogue. He said Mr. Shinde would engage with all stakeholders to ensure relief for commuters affected by the disruption.