Hyderabad: The talks between the state government and the Joint Action Committee (JAC) leaders of the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) unions stretched past midnight on Friday, culminating in a breakthrough. Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka's office confirmed that the government has agreed to grant 10% fitment as part of the pay revision and gave the green signal for the merger of the RTC with the state government.
After more than 12 hours of discussions with Bhatti and ministers Ponnam Prabhakar, D Sridhar Babu, G Vivek, and Adluri Lakshman—alongside earlier deliberations with the Vikas Raj-led IAS officers committee—the government agreed to a majority of the 32 demands put forth by the RTC JAC. These included conducting elections to the recognized union, marking the revival of union elections.
The JAC's charter of demands had focused on merger of TSRTC with the government, revival of union elections, implementation of 30% pay revision for 2021 and 2025, and regularization of service under compassionate appointments, among others.
Deputy CM's address to union leaders
Bhatti, addressing the union leaders, said: "I wish to make it unequivocally clear that we will not conduct ourselves in the manner of our predecessors. At a time when Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, I, and other ministers were occupied with the budget sessions, constituency delimitation, the women's reservation bill, and election campaigns in other states—the sudden decision to go on strike resulted in the tragic loss of a worker. This is deeply distressing, and it represents an irreparable loss for that family."
He added: "Issues must be resolved through dialogue; taking one's own life is never the right course of action. The RTC belongs to all of us; the responsibility to safeguard it rests with every one of us. For the poor and for women, in particular, the RTC serves as the sole lifeline for transportation."
Social responsibility to sustain RTC
The Deputy CM also said, "With their interests in mind, we bear a social responsibility to sustain this institution and make it even more accessible to the public. Let us certainly engage in discussions regarding the administrative and policy-related decisions concerning the RTC. Let us resolve the workers' grievances with a positive and constructive approach."
The marathon negotiations, which began earlier in the day, saw the government agreeing to most of the demands, with further details expected to be announced soon. The breakthrough is seen as a major step towards ending the prolonged deadlock between the state government and RTC unions.
