While the negotiations with the TSRTC unions were still going on, Telangana government has taken the decision to impose the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) on all the TSRTC employees who would participate in the strike on October 5th. RTC MD Sunil Sharma has released an official statement regarding this. The circular stated that the strike is illegal and all the employees who participate in such illegal strike e liable be dismissed. Respective officials are instructed to display these notices in all the depots across the state. Sunil Sharma also stated that the police would provide security to workers who won’t participate in the strike.
TSRTC workers were to go on a strike from this midnight while the services to far-off areas have already been stopped. The union leaders hit back the ESMA statement saying that they were not afraid of these notices. Under the Essential Services Maintenance Act, 1968, employees in a long list of “essential services” like post and telegraph, transport and port operations are prohibited from going on strike. This gives power to the organisation’s officials to expel or arrest the employees who are on the strike.
