JOIN USMaruti plant at Manesar in a mess
A burnt reception gate, charred CCTVs, laptops, computers, damaged cars, bikes, cycles, scattered shards of glass panes, mangled equipment all narrate the tale of labourers’ fury at Maruti Suzuki India plant at Manesar industrial estate.
That was the scene three days after parts of the factory were burnt down following vandalism by a section of the 4000-strong labour force when Deccan Herald visited the spot on Wednesday.
However, it is business as usual at the nearby Gurgaon plant of Maruti, a contrast from the Manesar plant.
As hundreds of police and private security guards provide tight security to the massive Manesar plant, scores of onlookers from nearby areas made a beeline for Gate No 2 to get a glimpse of what remains after the violence that broke out on Wednesday.
“With the police starting the probe into the incident, the crime scene would remain intact for a few more days to enable investigating officials to collect the evidence,” a senior official of the company told this newspaper.
Despite the company announcing lockout, some senior officials were seen visiting the plant to help the investigating officials. Joint Commissioner of Police Gurgaon District Anil Kumar told reporters that 800-1,000 policemen were still inside the plant to ward off any untoward incident.
“We are also giving protection to other sensitive locations. Our men are present at the nearby Suzuki Power train factory and Maruti’s Gurgaon plant,” Kumar said.
On Saturday, dozens of villagers visited the plant and met senior officials and expressed their solidarity with the company. As a precautionary measure, police have beefed up security in the entire Manesar industrial town which houses over 100 big industries providing jobs to 20000-odd people.
“So far, none of the employees’ unions of other factories have expressed support to Maruti employees’ union. But the police are keeping a close watch as rest of the factories in the area will reopen on Monday after weekend holidays”, said the senior police official.
The Haryana government is extra cautious and has deployed its senior labour and police officials to strife-hit areas to take quick measure in case of any untoward incident.
However, with police announcing that they will detain all 3,000 workers at the Manesar factory in connection with the violence, a tense situation prevails in areas surrounding the unit.
Meanwhile, officials of the company who are deployed in three hospitals at Gurgaon to take care of their injured colleagues, were on their toes. They assisted the members of the families of recuperating officials in buying medicines and helping entry of their visitors.
At Medanta hospital, the company officials did not let journalists meet the injured personnel. “You should contact management officials first to meet our patient here,” a company official, who was attending the visitors of the injured persons, said, when contacted for information about the patients.