The Maharashtra Government has stepped in to resolve the ongoing strike by Aapli Bus contractual staff in Nagpur by revising the minimum wages. The employees had been on strike since October 3, demanding the enforcement of a 2015 government resolution (GR) that would significantly increase their wages.
On Monday, the Department of Industry, Labour, and Mining issued a notification announcing the revision of minimum wages for drivers and conductors, effective immediately. “The revision is quite favourable and satisfactory for our members,” said Vivek Wankhade and Rakesh Ghosekar of the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, who were spearheading the strike along with two other unions.
As per the GR, employees are divided into Class A and Class B Municipal Corporations across the state. Drivers under Class A corporations will receive a salary of ₹19,625, while those under Class B will earn ₹18,975. However, efforts to end the strike—causing inconvenience to citizens—have stalled, as the four operators contracted by the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) to manage over 300 buses refused to raise wages, citing financial challenges.
The issue escalated to the courts, with the NMC attempting to prevent employees from continuing their strike. Previously, the head of the Transport Department indicated that the operators were responsible for the salary increase. However, the operators are demanding higher payments while also advocating for increased wages for the employees. As a result, there is now a call for the Municipal Corporation to raise salaries.
Some officials from the organisations believe that, according to the 2015 GR, the minimum salary was set at Rs 15,000. After changes were made to the GR five years later, the minimum salary (basic) was raised to Rs 18,000 in the 2020 GR. Under this new framework, drivers should have been earning around Rs 22,000 and conductors around Rs 20,000, but in reality, drivers and conductors were only receiving between Rs 12,000 and Rs 14,000. This discrepancy is what led to the initiation of the strike. Now, in the new GR, the basic salary has not increased by even Rs 1,000.
Shukla pointed out that there are no direct trains from Nagpur to major cities in the north, despite a large number of North Indians living in Vidarbha. After the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, the number of passengers has increased, but there is only one weekly train on this route.
The BJP Railway Passenger Cell’s demands aim to improve connectivity and convenience for passengers traveling to and from Nagpur. By splitting the Nagpur-Secunderabad Vande Bharat Express, introducing new trains, and extending existing routes, the party hopes to boost tourism, trade, and revenue for the railways while also addressing the needs of the growing passenger base in the region.