17 January,2025 01:07 PM IST | Mumbai | Rajendra B. Aklekar
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BEST wet lease staff working on Olectra Company buses went on strike at the Mumbai Central bus depot on Friday, leaving passengers stranded. The workers are demanding the disbursal of their salaries.
"The strike at Kala Killa depot in Dharavi by Olectra workers ended yesterday. However, a fresh strike by Olectra workers has started at the Mumbai Central depot this morning over salary-related demands. The BEST undertaking has deployed self-owned buses on the affected routes," said BEST spokesperson Sudas Sawant.
Olectra bus drivers had also gone on strike at the Kalakilla bus depot near Dharavi on Thursday, demanding their salaries, which disrupted bus services. The drivers have been outsourced by Maurya Company through Team Olectra.
"The staff working on Olectra buses at the Kalakilla depot suddenly stopped work due to the non-payment of their current month's salary. Rohan Maurya, CEO of Maurya Company, which appoints bus drivers for Olectra, assured that the salaries would be deposited in the bank by 6 PM. However, the drivers were unwilling to accept the assurance, as similar promises had been made since the 10th. Consequently, work was halted, but the issue was resolved yesterday," said a BEST spokesperson.
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"Following the strike, the BEST undertaking had also deployed self-owned buses yesterday on the affected routes to minimise inconvenience to passengers," the spokesperson added.
The Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply And Transport (BEST) wet-lease staff working on Olectra Company buses at Kala Killa bus depot in Dharavi area of Mumbai went on strike on Thursday, affecting bus services.
The protesting staffers demanded the disbursal of their salaries. The drivers had been outsourced from Maurya Company by Team Olectra.
"Today, from 12:30 pm, staffers working on Olectra buses at Kalakilla depot suddenly stopped work due to non-payment of their current month's salary. Rohan Maurya, CEO of Maurya Company (which appoints bus drivers for Olectra Company), assured that the salaries of all the drivers would be deposited in their bank accounts by 6 pm. But the bus drivers were not in the mood to listen because they say that they have been hearing the same thing since the 10th," said BEST spokesperson Sudas Sawant.
"Following this, work was stopped, and they have taken the stand that the work stoppage will not be withdrawn until the salaries are deposited in the bank," he explained.
"As a result, the BEST undertaking has pressed its own buses into service on affected bus routes to avoid inconvenience to passengers," he added.
