New Delhi: Five-day coal industry on strike from Tuesday on the call of trade unions. It had been termed as the biggest industrial action since 1977.
They had call protest against ‘disinvestment and restructuring of State-run Coal India’ and to pressurize for their other demands which includes roll-back of what they call as “process of denationalizing of coal sector”.
Jibon Roy, All India Coal Workers Federation leader said in a statement that around seven lakh workers are joining the strike, the government has also called a meeting today with representatives of major trade unions — BMS, INTUC, AITUC, CITU and HMS — to sort out the issue.
Notify that strike can affect coal production of up to 1.5 million tonnes a day and may also hit supplies to power plants which are already grappling with fuel shortages.
Newly appointed CMD of Coal India Sutirtha Bhattacharya said to PTI, “We are hopeful the situation would be resolved in an amicable manner. The precise impact of the strike would be known later and it would be premature to predict (the impact) at this juncture.”
He also said, “It is true that production picks up tempo in the last quarter, as the closure of fiscal draws near. It is unfortunate that the unions have called the strike. We have appealed to them to withdraw the strike in national interest and even now our efforts are on to persuade them to refrain from going into strike.”
It is also notable that trade unions have boycotted earlier meeting called by the government twice.
General S.Q. Zama, Secretary General of Indian National Mineworkers’ Federation (INMF), said, “The workers across the nation have proceeded on strike.”
Zama also said that the strike began from the first shift starting 6 a.m. on Tuesday.
“Almost 100 per cent of Coal India (CIL) workers are participating in the agitation. Only handful of emergency services are continuing,” he added.
Bureau Report
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