Mahbubnagar: CPI supports RTC strike, demands the government to resolve employees problems

Mahbubnagar: The RTC employees, who are on an indefinite strike demanding the State government resolve their long pending issues, received full support from the Communist party of India (CPI) members in Mahbubnagar on Saturday.

Expressing their solidarity with the RTC employees' cause, the CPI leaders in Mahbubnagar vehemently opposed the undemocratic and suppressive attitude of the State government.

While speaking to the Hans India, CPI district secretary Paramesh Goud said that the police in the district are behaving like dictators and arresting the RTC employees and JAC members and suppressing their constitutional and democratic right to speech and peaceful protest.

The CPI district secretary while expressing his support to the striking RTC employees in the district said that since 2014 to 2019 after formation of Telangana, the RTC has paid to the government more than Rs 5,000 crore in the form of taxes. However, when the RTC employees are asking for better payment of salaries, facilities and urging the government to merge the RTC into government to help the corporation to come out of losses, the state government is behaving adamantly and adopting suppressive measures, which will prove counterproductive for the government.

On one hand the government is fleecing RTC with various taxes and not even paying the pending subsidies on bus passes, on the other the government is levelling allegations on the RTC employees and its management for the losses, said Goud.

The CPI secretary also felt that the State government is not paying good salaries to the RTC employees; and violating the Supreme Court order of payment of minimum salary of Rs 24,000 basic to each employee. "RTC is paying a basic of Rs 13,000 to conductors and Rs 16,000 to drivers. This is clearly against the labour laws and wage board recommendations.