Mumbai:
Mumbai's lifeline, the local trains, may come to a screeching halt on Monday as about 1,000 motormen of the Central and Western local railway line are expected to go on a hunger protest. And this is a very bad news for the city's daily commuters.
According to reports, the motormen will continue driving the trains but may choose to not work overtime. This means lesser number of trains may ply in the evening - the peak hour when office-goers take the local trains to return back home.
The motormen union has a long-standing set of demands:
- Increase in wages
- Lesser hours of overtime
- Better working conditions
- Security for motormen on local trains
They have protested many times in the past from flash strikes to refusing to work overtime. But each time they have returned to work after assurances from the Railways.
Keeping the protest in view, the Railway authorities have put in place contingency measures, including the deployment of extra security at railway stations.
The authorities say that the impact, if any, will be seen towards the evening.
Railway has also asked for 6,000 extra buses looking at the situation. However, city's transport authority, Bombay Electric Supply and Transport Company (BEST), will give 3,000 buses and Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) will deploy only 450 extra buses.
The state government has also swung into action, pulling in more buses to transport people across the city. The authorities have advised the people of Mumbai not to make unnecessary travel by trains.
Additional Chief Secretary, Home, will deploy 10,000 security personnel in the city from Monday.
The Western Railway operates 1200 trains daily which carries 30 lakh commuters every day, while Central Railway operates 1400 trains daily which carries 35 lakh commuters.