Though the strike by 30,000 employees of the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) entered the fourth day on Friday, leading to hardship for lakhs of Mumbaikars, most members of the BEST committee, the policy-making body of the utility, did not seem to be bothered about it.
The committee’s meeting was adjourned due to lack of quorum, as only three of the 17 members along with chairman Ashish Chemburkar were present. BEST officials said a quorum requires at least seven members.
Senior Congress member and Opposition leader in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Ravi Raja, and BJP members Sunil Ganacharya and Shrikant Kavathankar were present for the meeting. None of the Shiv Sena members, the majority party in the committee, turned up.
Mr. Raja laid the blame squarely on the Sena for avoiding discussion on his planned adjournment motion. “It is the responsibility of the ruling party to have a quorum, but they did not want to face tough questions. They wanted to hide their failure,” Mr. Raja said.
Senior BEST officials also criticised the move. “The BEST committee comprises elected members who have a duty towards the people of the city. Their lack of presence shows they don’t care about the hardships faced by people,” a senior official said.
Metro trains are chock-a-block with commuters. Mumbai Metro One has added 12 services to deal with the rush and deployed staff to manage crowds at key stations. | Photo Credit: Supreet Sapkal
Amid the growing backlash from commuters and striking employees, the State government on Friday set up a three-member committee to resolve the stalemate. The panel, headed by Chief Secretary D.K. Jain and comprising secretaries of the Transport and Urban Development departments, held preliminary discussions with BMC officials.
Financial burden
The informal talks were on the possibility of merging the BEST budget with that of the BMC, and meeting other demands of the employees, officials said. Representatives from the BMC told the panel that with a burden of ₹1,780 crore every year owing to the Seventh Pay Commission, it is in no position to take extra financial load.
“If we agree to their demands, the minimum price of a ticket could jump to ₹15. Moreover, these BEST employees did not associate with the corporation until two years ago, the BMC has informed us,” a source in the panel said. The members will meet again on Saturday.
The government, meanwhile, informed the Bombay High Court about the formation of the committee. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Naresh Patil and Justice N.M. Jamdar was hearing a public interest litigation filed by advocate Datta Mane about the inconvenience caused to around 50 lakh of commuters by the strike.
Hold talks: HC
The court told the BEST Workers’ Union, “You take the first step now. Call a meeting of all your members and others supporting you and take a decision to create a congenial environment and hold talks with the government.”
Senior counsels for BMC and BEST said that while the law prohibits workers from going on strike, the authorities want to have a dialogue and resolve the issues.
The matter will now be heard on January 14.