Mumbai’s suburban train motormen begin hunger strike

More than 1,000 motormen of suburban trains on the Western and Central Railways today began their indefinite hunger strike agitation, while driving trains without having even a glass of water, to press for their long pending demands.

Devendrea Yadav, a union leader of WR, said more than 1,000 motormen went on hunger strike in Mumbai. Even water was not taken by them since 0600 hrs. He said 250 out of 400 motormen of WR were sitting on hunger strike at Churchgate while the remaining were running the trains.

Whereas on the CR, 400 out of 600 were sitting on hunger strike at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) while the others were running the trains.

Mr Yadav also said some motormen took ill at CST and Churchgate, and they were being treated by the doctors at railway station itself.

The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of WR, Nitin David, said the trains were running on time and there was no delay till noon. But, by the evening, the train services could be disrupted. However, the railway authorities have asked the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) to run extra buses across the city.

The CR spokesperson said the trains were running on time, but there could be problem later in the day. The motormen's demands include higher salaries and better working conditions among others.

vpost : 03