The strike of Coal India trade unions continued for the second day on Friday and the trade unions claimed that the strike was completely successful, while the coal company’s management claimed that it has partially affected the work.
The strike has been called in protest against allowing commercial mining in the coal sector and almost all major central trade unions — Hind Mazdoor Sabha, INTUC, AITUC, CITU and Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh backed BMS were agreed to go on a three day strike to catch the attention of the Central Government’s decision in this regard.
Some union leaders said that the management tried to force the workers to return on their work but it did not materialise. Hind Mazdoor Mazdoor Federation supported by Hind Mazdoor Union president, Nathulal Pandey said that the trents of the became more widespread on Friday due to various reasons, the workers who could not attend it on Thursday also supported the strike on Friday.
CITU-backed All India Coal Workers Federation, Jharkhand General Secretary, DD Ramanandan said that as of now there is no news of the weakening of the strike or any hindrance in it. Also, there is no news of any major violence due to the strike, he added.
The major demands of the agitating workers are to withdraw the decision of commercial mining, stop the privatisation of Coal India and SCCL, stop the conspiracy to separate CMPDI from Coal India, pay the contract workers according to the High Power Committee’s recommendation and demands are being made to make payment and implement all the points of the wage agreement.
The unions said that on the first day of the strike, the production of coal has come to a standstill with loss of about 2 million tonnes (MT) of output.
“The despatch of coal is also adversely affected and the figure of participants in strike is above 95 per cent,” said Ramanandan. Union Coal Minister Prahlad Joshi urged the employees of Coal India to end the ongoing strike and resume work.
“It is estimated that States will lose more than Rs 319 crores as part of revenues. A loss of this magnitude is a national loss and I urge employees of Coal PSUs to end the ongoing strike and resume back their work,” Joshi tweeted. CIL Chairman Pramod Agrawal on Thursday evening appealed to the workmen to resume their duties in the interest of the PSU.