The three-day BEST bus strike in Mumbai was called off late Sunday after union leaders met Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik. The strike had disrupted bus services across the city, forcing commuters to rely on trains, Metro services and private transport
Striking union leaders of BEST met Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik on Sunday evening, following which the three-day strike was called off late at night. With zero buses running on Sunday, the undertaking had arranged buses from the Maharashtra State Transport for the sake of National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) students.
The strike, led by an umbrella body of 12 unions, began on Friday over demands, including the merger of BEST’s budget with that of the BMC, a one-time settlement of pending legal dues of retired employees, and implementation of the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations for 2016-2026.
Striking union leader Uday Ambonkar told Mid-Day on Sunday, “Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik are meeting us this evening. We are hopeful of the discussions and faster resolution of the strike. We apologise to Mumbaikars for this strike and are thankful to the workers who have come together despite not having a single political leadership, but with genuine issues concerning workers.
The only option left for me was to walk all the way to the station and take a train. We have to depend on trains entirely because share autos are not available in our locality, and paying ’60 one way is not affordable
https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai/mumbai-news/article/mumbai-best-bus-strike-called-off-after-union-leaders-meet-eknath-shinde-and-pratap-sarnaik-23636206