DTC strike cripples bus services in capital, may continue today

NEW DELHI: Nearly 45 lakh bus commuters in the capital were left in the lurch on a hot Monday as Delhi Transport Corporation as well as most cluster buses stayed off roads because of striking DTC drivers and conductors, who are demanding Rs 1 crore compensation for the family of a driver killed in a road rage incident on Sunday.
The strike is likely to continue on Tuesday as efforts to get the staffers back on work had not succeeded till late on Monday.DTC could only put 704 buses into service in the morning, which got further reduced to 250 in the evening shift. Only 500 cluster buses plied on road because striking DTC staff didn’t allow the buses to come out of depots in Sunehri Nullah, Kanjhawala and Millennium Depot, said DIMTS, which runs these buses.
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The impact of the DTC strike was visible through the day – buses were missing from roads with many commuters opting for the Delhi Metro, which saw an increase of 1.92 lakh in ridership. With parts of the DTC union threatening to continue the strike on Tuesday as well, the state bus agency is in a bind.
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Till late in the evening, city transport minister Gopal Rai was in meetings with the transport department and DTC officials to get the drivers back to work. “If the striking employees don't return to work immediately, we will take all necessary action, including invoking ESMA,” said Rai.
The city government announced that it would take care of deceased driver Ashok Kumar’s daughter as well as foot the medical expenses of his ailing wife. “This is besides the compensation of Rs 5 lakh and a job offered to Kumar's son in the DTC,” Rai said.
On a normal day, 4,705 DTC buses and 1,292 cluster buses operate in the city. The worst affected, said DTC officials, were north Delhi and outer Delhi areas. They added that some drivers did turn up for duty but were not allowed to go in by the striking employees.
“DTC is seeking help from Delhi Police and other authorities to put maximum number of buses on road so that the public is not inconvenienced,” said DTC spokesman R S Minhas.
The minister added that the transport department has also been asked to expedite work on installation of CCTVs in buses, besides deploying marshals. This is to be done “soon” on the directions of the CM, the minister said.
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The DTC union, meanwhile, said the strike would continue till the government agreed to its demand for a greater compensation for the driver. Said Rampath Kasana, a member of the DTC union, “Delhi government gave a compensation of Rs 1 crore to a Delhi cop when Delhi Police doesn’t even come under its jurisdiction. Why can’t they be equally generous about their own employee?”
All through Monday, striking DTC staff stopped buses from getting out of the depots. The drivers and conductors turned up at the depots in the morning and shouted slogans.
“We are hoping some drivers will return to work on Tuesday, especially the contractual ones,” added a government official. However, till late evening, almost all drivers of the DTC were still on strike.