Tamil Nadu’s January issue this year seems to be the bus strike. Unlike last year’s Jallikattu issue, the people are not on the roads to protest for their right to celebrate their culture. They are on the roads thanks to the state government and labour unions. All this over 0.13 percent of difference of opinion. The government wants the bus drivers to accept a 2.44 percent hike, while the unions stand firm on 2.57 percent. The common people are the ones who are suffering 100 percent in this fight for numbers.
It started in the late evening on 4 January with some drivers leaving their vehicles stranded. This strike has also spread across the state and is not limited to Chennai. One commuter (@Selvaku0711) on his Twitter timeline mentioned that his bus from Bangalore to Madurai was stopped midway, leaving him and other passengers stranded in Salem.
Another Twitter user (@logindinesh05) mentioned that the staff in the depot not only refused to move the bus, but also switched off the lights that night, leaving the passengers in the dark. Literally!
If one were to look at the timing of the bus strike, one cannot ignore that it happens to be around Pongal weekend. By Pongal time, the state government must resolve the issue and get buses plying to facilitate people returning to their native places. If this strike continues (which it looks like it will), the state government would have no choice but to capitulate to the demands of the union despite them announcing additional buses.
The high court must step in, and ask the unions to get back to work and put an end to people’s misery.
But the unions are not in a mood to listen to the court, or the government, or the people. The unions did have an option to take the government to the court and fight for the justice they feel they deserve, but they chose to use the aam aadmi as shields. By causing inconvenience to people and increasing their resentment against the state government, the unions and their associated political parties can gain mileage on two fronts. One, they can push the government to meet their demands. Two, they can make the government look weak and inconsiderate towards the employees as well as the people of the state who are suffering.
The government is plying private vehicles and allowing private drivers to drive the government vehicles. The only catch here is that the private vehicles are not here to rescue the people, they are far more expensive.
The answer to the perineal question in the state, “How would Amma have handled the strike?” has a well-known and recorded answer.
ESMA.
The last time the government employees chose to strike, she used the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) and fired employees who did not get to work. They had to abdicate that time, even though she paid the price for it in the next election, with government employees siding with the DMK. She was willing the pay the price and put the interests of the people above electoral politics. This time too, it is AIADMK in power. However, without her, one cannot be judged harshly for expecting the government, as weak as it is, to fold after delaying the issue, hoping it would get resolved by itself.
The fate of the people now lies in the hands of the high court and they are hoping it takes stringent action against the unions and raps the government – which seems so unsure of what to do next – on its knuckles. The only ones benefiting in this strike, are private buses, encashing on this opportunity to earn a quick buck while the people suffer.
(Anand Balasubramanian is an IT professional. This is a personal blog and the opinions expressed above are the author’s own. You can follow the author on Twitter @absaysthis. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)
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