PANAJI
The management of the State-owned Kadamba Transport Corporation Limited (KTCL) and top officials of the State administration, including Chief Secretary Dr V Candavelou, IAS, have over the last few days gone on an overdrive to resolve the demands and issues raised in a notice for a March 19 strike by the public transporter's employees.
At least two separate meetings have been held by top KTCL officials with Dr Candavelou where the Director of Transport was also present to iron out the administrative hindrances to resolving the demands of the employees. A senior KTCL official said all the staff-related issues are expected to be resolved by Monday (March 17).
The several hundred-strong KTCL workforce is furious that the government has not yet kept its promise of fulfilling the demands made when their workers' union had held protests and demonstrations in the past.
Around a week ago, the union served a formal strike notice saying they will not work from March 19, which could potentially take hundreds of KTCL buses off the roads across the State and disrupt transportation which many Goans are dependent on for their daily commute.
Following the notice, KTCL officials went on an overdrive holding meetings with top government officials to resolve the issues raised. "We will have another meeting with the Director of Transport on Monday and hopefully all these issues will be resolved," the senior KTCL official said.
One of the main demands of the KTC employees is immediate payment of arrears of 34 months between January 2016 and January 2018. Other demands are related to a 12% Provident Fund contribution instead of 10% since December 2009 and the regularisation of about 350 contract workers, all of who have been working for 7 to 10 years.
