BEST Strike Cripples Mumbai Bus Services

Mumbai: Commuters across Mumbai faced major disruptions on Friday after employees of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking launched an indefinite strike, severely affecting bus services often regarded as the city's second lifeline after the suburban railway network.

According to BEST officials, only 32 buses were operational on city roads on Friday morning, a steep drop from the thousands of buses that normally serve Mumbai’s daily commuters. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik held discussions with the BEST Sanyukt Kamgar Kruti Samiti in an effort to resolve the deadlock and restore services. The action committee is expected to hold another meeting with its members before deciding its next course of action.

The indefinite strike was called by the BEST Sanyukt Kamgar Kruti Samiti, an umbrella body representing 12 employee unions, after negotiations with the administration failed to yield a breakthrough. The agitation, which began at midnight on June 18, stems from a series of long-pending demands related to employee welfare and the functioning of the undertaking.

Among the key demands raised by the unions are the merger of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) dedicated ‘C’ budget for BEST with its main ‘A’ budget, settlement of pending legal dues of retired employees through a one-time payment, reduction in dependence on contractual bus operators, and regularisation of wet-lease workers through their absorption into the BEST workforce.

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and BEST Committee member Nitin Nandgaonkar alleged that the current crisis was the result of administrative neglect by the BEST undertaking and the State government.

BEST Chairperson Trushna Vishwasrao appealed to the striking employees to withdraw the agitation and “not hold Mumbai to ransom”. “If the striking employees fail to withdraw the strike, action will be initiated against them,” Ms. Vishwasrao said.

Mr. Sarnaik said the government was working to resolve all issues through dialogue and coordination. The Minister said a meeting would be convened under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, in the presence of Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, to arrive at a final resolution. He added that instructions had already been issued to the concerned authorities to address demands that could be resolved by the General Manager within a week.