HYDERABAD: The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) is staring at a potential disruption as leaders of the TSRTC Joint Action Committee (JAC) have issued a stern ultimatum: if the government does not call them for negotiations by midnight on 6 May, over 40,000 employees will begin an indefinite strike starting 7 May.
As part of their protest, TSRTC employees on Monday organised a “Karmika Kavathu” (workers’ march) from the RTC Kalabhavan to the Bus Bhavan in Hyderabad’s Baglingampally. Chanting slogans against the management’s inaction, the unions intensified pressure on the government.
Speaking at a public meeting at Bus Bhavan, JAC Chairman Eeduru Venkanna and Co-Chairmen Hanumanthu Mudiraj and Thomas Reddy demanded that the government immediately engage in dialogue. They criticised the previous BRS administration for failing to resolve long-standing worker issues and claimed it had only compounded their problems over the past decade.
Key demands
The union leaders called on the Congress government to fulfil its election promises, including:
Full merger of TSRTC with the state government
Wage revisions
Restoration of employee unions
Procurement of new buses
Health safeguards for overworked employees
They raised alarm over employees being forced to work up to 16 hours a day, allegedly in violation of labour norms, and blamed this for rising health issues among the workforce. They also demanded that the management itself purchase electric buses instead of outsourcing procurement.
The unions said they had been staging protests for months and had officially issued a strike notice on 27 January. However, they claimed the government had failed to respond, making the delay unacceptable.
“We don’t want to strike, but we’re prepared”
Leaders reiterated that striking is not their preferred course of action but insisted they would not back down unless meaningful talks begin. They made it clear that if their invitation for dialogue is ignored, the entire JAC—including EU, TJMU, TMU, NMU, BKU, BWU, and KP unions—will join the strike, with participation expected from 40,600 employees across the state.
The looming strike raises concerns about public transport disruptions across Telangana, especially in Hyderabad and rural areas where TSRTC buses remain the primary mode of travel for thousands of commuters daily.
