GUWAHATI: According to reports, Tinsukia and Dibrugarh district’s private bus operators have called for an indefinite halt of bus services to begin today in protest of Tinsukia Traffic Police's regular penalties.
Tinsukia and Dibrugarh District Bus Owners Association have announced an indefinite bus service stoppage beginning at 5 a.m. today. Members of the Bus Owners' Association informed the media that bus services had been suspended indefinitely due to 'irrelevant and harsh' penalties issued on buses by traffic cops.
Employees of all buses departing from Tinsukia encounter numerous challenges due to frequent bus penalties and the difficulty in paying the bus EMI each month.
The bus association members claimed that unless the Tinsukia district administration develops a consistent guideline for picking up passengers from the Assam State Transport Corporation station in Tinsukia to the entire ATM road, the indefinite suspension of bus services will continue.
On the other hand, in May, Employees of the Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) had planned a state-wide strike beginning June 1.
The strike decision comes as ASTC prepares to lay off 771 employees who were reportedly recruited unfairly.
During the time of Anand Prakash Tiwari and Khagendra Nath Chetia as Managing Directors, a total of 2,274 people were employed without following proper procedures, according to reports.
A notice has been issued in response to these allegations, stating that an investigation would be conducted to determine the authenticity of the claims. If the allegations are shown to be genuine, the former Managing Directors will be served with show cause notices, and departmental actions will be begun against them for violating government regulations.
Meanwhile, after conducting the necessary investigation, the transport department will assess ASTC's current contractual workforce. Based on the assessment, suitable instructions will be issued to retain only essential and legally appointed contractual personnel. The remainder of the workers will be discharged immediately, and the process is scheduled to take 60 days.
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