By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, September 2, 2015 : Vehicular traffic and train services were affected in Odisha this morning following a 12-hour Bharat bandh call by 10 trade unions.
Bharat Hind Mazdoor Sangh, ally of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party [BJP] had withdrawn its support to the strike at the last minute.
“We had given the hartal [strike] call over a 12-points charter of demands, including price rise of essential commodities, withdrawal of the proposed anti-worker amendments in labour laws and stopping the disinvestment and privatisation of PSUs. As spontaneous response to our strike call, people overwhelmly backed the strike to make it look like a Bandh Call as propagated by the media,”, said the joint convenor of Odisha Sharamik Karmachari Ekta Manch [OSKEM] Dusmanta Das.
Aware of the Supreme Court verdict virtually banning any kinds of Bandh, the trade unions claimed that they had called for hartal.
In Bhubaneswar, the trade union activists blocked roads in major locations by burning tyres, demonstrated in front of various banks and corporate houses. Besides, the agitators also picketed at the city railway stations and detained Puri-Bikaner Express, Bhubaneswar-Bolangir Inter City Express, and Duronto Express.
The trade union activists also stated demonstration in front of Nalco corporate office at Jayadev Vihar while some trade union activists took out a rally in the city shouting slogans against the Centre.
The trade unions seek containment of price-rise through universalisation of public distribution system and ban on speculative trade in commodity market, contain unemployment through concrete measures for employment generation, strict enforcement of all basic labour laws without any exception or exemption and stringent punitive measure for violation for labour laws.
Besides they ask for universal social security cover for all workers, minimum wages of not less than Rs 15,000 per month with provisions of indexation, assured enhanced pension not less than Rs 3000 per month for the entire working population, stoppage of disinvestment in Central and state PSUs.
Among other demands included stoppage of contracts in permanent perennial work and payment of same wage and benefits for contract workers as regular workers for same and similar work, removal of all ceilings on payment and eligibility of bonus, provident fund; increase the quantum of gratuity, compulsory registration of trade unions within a period of 45 days from the date of submitting applications and immediate ratification of ILO Convention C 87 and C 98, no amendments in Labour Law and no FDI in Railways, Insurance and Defence.
All Odisha Bank Employees Federation [AIBEF] president Jagadish Jena said the Narendra Modi government appeared to be keen to gratify corporate than the common man. “We have given the list of big corporate defaulters who account for more Rs 2.78 lakh crore. No action has been taken against them. Instead, corporate hosues are being provided loans at an unbelievable less than one per cent interest”, he lamented.
Both the trade union leaders made it clear that the workers and common people have had protests but it did not have any effect on the NDA government forcing them to resort to strike.
