Bharat bandh hits normal life, transport services affected in West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu

Normal life was disrupted at some cities in West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the wake of ‘Bharat Bandh’ called by central trade unions on  Monday (March 28, 2022).

Banking and transportation were among the services that were affected due to the two-day nationwide strike. The central trade unions are protesting against “the anti-worker, anti-farmer, anti-people and anti-national policies” of the central government.

West Bengal

Transport services were affected in a few districts in West Bengal as protesters blocked roads and halted train movement at some railway stations on the Howrah and Sealdah sections.

Operations at offices, educational institutions and commercial establishments, however, were unaffected in most parts of the state, even as the trade unions backed by the Left Front exuded confidence that the strike would be successful on both days.

Banking services were partially impacted as branches in a few areas downed shutters with a section of employees not reporting for duty, while many ATMs remained closed. There was no impact on the functioning of new-generation private sector banks.

Kerala

The two-day nationwide strike began in Kerala on Monday with almost all institutions downing their shutters. State-run KSRTC buses did not operate while taxis, auto-rickshaws and private buses were kept away from the roads across the state. Commercial vehicles including trucks and lorries are also not plying expressing solidarity with the strike.

However, the essential services including milk, newspapers, hospitals, ambulances were not affected.

All employees unions in the state and the country except the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh are taking part in the protest.

Tamil Nadu

A heavy rush was witnessed in metro railway stations in Chennai as the state-run Metropolitan Transport Corporation( MTC) buses stayed off the road due to the pan India strike called by joint trade unions. Koymabedu station was particularly packed with long queues for tickets.

Koyambedu, Triplicane, Nungambakkam and all major stations were said to be overcrowded as buses were not plying. All these areas have heavy traffic rush.

According to media reports, Nungambakkam station had more than 55,000 passengers from 5 a.m on Monday till 12 p.m.

Around 1000 MTC buses are off the road in Chennai corporation alone due to the strike against the privatisation policies of the Union government.

Office-goers, students, and daily wage earners were reportedly stranded on the road.

Earlier on Sunday, All Indian Trade Union Congress (AITUC) general secretary Amarjeet Kaur had said that they were expecting participation of over 20 crore formal and informal workers with mass mobilisation across the country on Monday and Tuesday.

Trade unions, including AITUC, INTUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC, demand scrapping of the proposed changes in labour laws, privatisation of any form and the national monetisation pipeline. Increased allocation of wages under MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act) and regularisation of contract workers are also part of their demands.