Telangana: TRS affiliate TBGKS wins Singareni trade union elections

Hyderabad : An affiliate of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi, the Telangana Boggu Gani Karmika Sangham (TBGKS) recorded a massive victory in the trade union elections of the Singareni Collieries Company Limited that went to polls on Thursday.

The Singareni Collieries is one of the largest coal companies in the country.

The trade union elections assume importance as its nearly 55,000 voters play a major role in deciding the electoral fortunes in as many as 12 assembly constituencies spread over five districts-- Adilabad, Mancherial, Karimnagar, Peddapalli and Bhadradri Kothagudem.

The TRS, which had won all the 12 seats in 2014 elections, pulled out all stops to retain its hold in the Singareni to negate any anti-establishment wave in the state.

In the results announced in the early hours of Friday, the TGBKS, headed by Nizamabad MP and chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s daughter Kalvakuntla Kavitha, bagged nine divisions. These divisions are Yellandu, Bellampalli, Manuguru, Kothagudem Corporate division, Kothagudem mines, Srirampur, Ramagundam-1, Ramagundam-2 and Ramagundam-3.

On the other hand, the Opposition alliance comprising two nationa unions Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) and All India Trade Union Council (AITUC), and a regional union -- Telugu Nadu Trade Union Council (TNTUC), could win just two divisions – Bhupalpalli and Mandamarri.

Right from the beginning, the TRS-led union had the advantage over the opposition because most of the Singareni coal mine workers had played a major role in the movement for a separate Telangana state and they were actively associated with the TRS.

The TBGKS had for the first time won the Singareni trade union elections in 2012 by a margin of over 23,000 votes. This time, despite having an anti-establishment wave, the ruling party managed to retain its hold by promising to resolve the long-pending demand for jobs to the dependants of the retired coal mine workers. Among others it also promised an income tax exemption for the miners.

Attributing the victory to the leadership of the chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, the party MPs, MLAs and MLCs said that this was the landmark verdict given by the coal mine workers because they believe only the TRS government could resolve the problems of the workers.