Electric bus services were disrupted for three hours at the Nalgonda depot on Saturday as drivers staged a protest demanding higher wages and an end to alleged victimisation by the manpower agency.
The protest began early in the day, with drivers refusing to operate buses. They raised slogans against representatives of manpower agency JBM Siscon and accused them of harassing employees for forming a union, according to reports.
CITU (Centre of Indian Trade Unions)
leaders alleged that the drivers had been facing harassment for organising themselves under a union. The drivers, who have been working for the past 16 months, demanded a wage revision.
They pointed out that drivers at the Suryapet and Warangal depots were being paid Rs. 26,000 per month, while their counterparts in Nalgonda received only Rs. 20,000.
The protesters also demanded the reinstatement of Somayya, Murali, Krishna Reddy and 15 others who had been taken off duty.