Workers’ flash strike at Vishnu Nivasam

Tirupati: The outsourced contract workers working in TTD pilgrim complex Vishnu Nivasam on Wednesday resorted to flash strike, seeking the management to rein in the contractor from harassing them and taking vindictive actions against the workers.

The maintenance, sanitary and health workers struck work from 5 in the morning and the strike went on till Assistant Vigilance Security Officer (AVSO) Ashok Kumar Goud intervened and saw the strike was withdrawn by the workers around noon. It is needless to say that the pilgrims who are more in number due to Bakrid holiday faced lot of inconvenience due to the workers sudden strike.

AVSO along with CITU State vice-president Kandarapu Murali held discussion with the workers who poured their woes before the AVSO. The workers told the officials that they were left with no option but to resort to flash strike after notice was issued recently to 25 workers fearing removal from service.

Besides, three workers whose transfer to other place was withheld after higher officials’ intervention were not being allowed to sign in the attendance register since 45 days resulting in their salary pending though they are doing duty, they said. The three were transferred by the contractor but it was stopped with the official intervention after union leaders took the issue to them, they said.

After a prolonged discussion for over two hours, Ashok Kumar succeeded in convincing the workers to resume work from afternoon. Murali said that it was unfortunate that the TTD management turned a blind eye on the demand of the contract workers seeking termination of contractor Bhaskar Naidu who with his closeness with ruling party leaders tied the hands of TTD management, leaving the workers into lurch.

He said that TTD Contract Employees Union will step up the stir to force the TTD to end the contract of Bhaskar Naidu tormenting the workers for the last two years.

Journalists protest: Meanwhile, media persons also resorted to protest after two of them were roughed up by a vigilance staff at Vishnu Nivasam when they tried to cover the contact employees’ protest. Some of the workers climbed atop the massive building after the workers resorted to flash strike.

The city-based journalists joined in the protest resulting in local MLA M Suguna and TUDA chairman G Narasimha Yadav reaching Vishnu Nivasam. They along with TTD AVSO Ashok Kumar and PRO T Ravi persuaded the scribes to give up their protest, assuring to enquire into the alleged highhandedness of the security guard.

The MLA said that a meeting will also be convened with TTD officials and  media representatives for discussion to amicably sort out the issues the mediapersons were facing while covering TTD institutions and events.