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The nationwide strike called by 10 central trade unions on Wednesday affected normal life across the country with the Left bastion of Kerala coming to a virtual standstill.
Most of the nationalised banks, post offices, and public sector undertakings remained closed across the country.
As the transport sector, including autorickshaws and taxi, joined the strike, commuters across Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Thiruvananthapuram faced a harrowing experience. The strike had little impact in Chennai.
The trade unions claimed that members of Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, an RSS-affiliate which pulled out at the last moment, participated in the strike at several places.
The strike was largely peaceful except in West Bengal, where protesters clashed with Trinamool Congress workers and the police. According to an estimate by industry body the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), the strike caused a loss of Rs 25,000 crore to the economy.
Trade unions also claimed that 15 crore workers participated in the strike. “We never imagined that the strike would get such a response across the country. Workers have showed complete unity,” AITUC president Gurudas Dasgupta told Deccan Herald.
The senior leader said BMS pullout had very little impact. But according to reports, BMS withdrawal affected the strike in the banking sector, including the State Bank of India. Dasgupta also appealed to the government to take the right lessons from the strike.
“The huge support reflects the deep resentment among the workers. The amendments enacted by Rajasthan and other states will deprive 70 per cent workers of the benefits of the labour laws,” said CITU president A K Padmanabhan.
“It also reflects the determination of the working class to fight against the nefarious design of the corporate-serving govt at the Centre,” said CITU general secretary Tapan Sen.
The government, however, rejected the trade unions’s claims. Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan told reporters that the strike did not impact normal life. The Labour Ministry also stated that “there was not much impact in most parts of the country.”
The unions are protesting against the “anti-worker” amendments to labour laws, privatisation of public sector units and FDI in railways, defence and insurance. They are also demanding a minimum wage of Rs 15,000 per month, universalisation of the public distribution system and better terms for pension and gratuity, among other things.
Most of the nationalised banks, post offices, and public sector undertakings remained closed across the country.
As the transport sector, including autorickshaws and taxi, joined the strike, commuters across Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Thiruvananthapuram faced a harrowing experience. The strike had little impact in Chennai.
The trade unions claimed that members of Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, an RSS-affiliate which pulled out at the last moment, participated in the strike at several places.
The strike was largely peaceful except in West Bengal, where protesters clashed with Trinamool Congress workers and the police. According to an estimate by industry body the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), the strike caused a loss of Rs 25,000 crore to the economy.
Trade unions also claimed that 15 crore workers participated in the strike. “We never imagined that the strike would get such a response across the country. Workers have showed complete unity,” AITUC president Gurudas Dasgupta told Deccan Herald.
The senior leader said BMS pullout had very little impact. But according to reports, BMS withdrawal affected the strike in the banking sector, including the State Bank of India. Dasgupta also appealed to the government to take the right lessons from the strike.
“The huge support reflects the deep resentment among the workers. The amendments enacted by Rajasthan and other states will deprive 70 per cent workers of the benefits of the labour laws,” said CITU president A K Padmanabhan.
“It also reflects the determination of the working class to fight against the nefarious design of the corporate-serving govt at the Centre,” said CITU general secretary Tapan Sen.
The government, however, rejected the trade unions’s claims. Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan told reporters that the strike did not impact normal life. The Labour Ministry also stated that “there was not much impact in most parts of the country.”
The unions are protesting against the “anti-worker” amendments to labour laws, privatisation of public sector units and FDI in railways, defence and insurance. They are also demanding a minimum wage of Rs 15,000 per month, universalisation of the public distribution system and better terms for pension and gratuity, among other things.
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(Published 02 September 2015, 20:15 IST)
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