After a first day of strike by trade unions in Coal India, Union Minister of Coal and Mines Pralhad Joshi tweeted on Thursday that the planned three-day strike will cause a loss of Rs 319 crores to the nation.
Chhattisgarh itself will suffer a loss of Rs 66 crores, Joshi tweeted, and urged the trade unions to call off the strike in national interest.
But in Chhattisgarh, along with major trade unions Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, Hind Mazdoor Sabha, INTUC, AITUC and CITU, 25 civil, tribal and farmer rights organizations also extended their support to the strike.
V.M. Manohar, Secretary, Coal India Federation, said: “The strike will continue for next two days and if the government is not going to call off the tender of commercial mining there will be an indefinite strike in August.”
He said the unions have no faith in the government when it comes to coal mining. "This government is intentionally moving to privatize South Eastern Coal Fields," he said.
Some mines are also to be auctioned in Chhattisgarh for commercial mining.
