In Dehradun, as the month of August draws to a close, workers at the Uttarakhand Transport Corporation are trapped in a severe financial crisis. Nearly 1,800 to 2,000 employees, including drivers, conductors, and technical staff, have not received their salaries for the past three months. The prolonged non-payment of wages has made it extraordinarily difficult for these workers to manage basic household expenses and provide for their families. The situation has deteriorated to the point where some staff members have been compelled to leave their jobs with the corporation to work as daily wage laborers just to sustain their households.
Festive Season Marred by Financial Distress
With the festival of Raksha Bandhan fast approaching, the lack of funds has left many employees unable to afford travel back to their hometowns. Corporation employee Naman Sharma pointed out that brothers are left with empty pockets, making it impossible to even cover the journey home for the celebrations. Speaking on the scale of the hardship, employee Mukesh Naithani noted that nearly two thousand families are currently facing an acute livelihood crisis. Although partial salaries were recently released for a small subset of workers, the majority remain unpaid. Demonstrating consideration for daily commuters, the staff has kept their protest peaceful for the last six days, holding a brief two-hour demonstration daily before immediately returning to their shifts so bus services remain unhindered.
Health and Daily Essentials Severely Impacted
The wage delay is also taking a heavy toll on the physical health of workers. Employee Sanjay Kumar Sharma shared that he suffers from medical conditions such as blood pressure and diabetes, but due to unpaid salaries, he cannot afford his required daily medications. Consequently, his health has been deteriorating continuously. As the sole breadwinner supporting young children, maintaining basic family sustenance has become a daily struggle. Other employees report similar personal crises, as lack of money prevents them from meeting medical and domestic needs.
Union Rejects Management Excuses
Addressing the growing grievance, Uttarakhand Roadways Employees Divisional Minister Dinesh Sati stated that three months without pay has created a direct survival crisis for workers. He noted that discussions were held with corporation officials, but employees remain entirely dissatisfied with the responses provided. Management officials advised workers to collect their pay from headquarters, a stance Sati strongly disputed, asserting that staff members who work locally must receive their earnings from their direct administration. Sati emphasized that analyzing corporate revenue shortfalls is the responsibility of regional managers and general managers, not junior staff who carry out their duty shifts every day and expect prompt payment.
Ultimatum Issued for Statewide Work Boycott
The transport staff has issued a clear ultimatum to the state government and management authorities. They warned that if their pending salaries are not disbursed without delay, their peaceful demonstration will turn into an aggressive statewide strike. Employees stated that if conditions do not improve immediately, they will be forced to enforce a complete work boycott, halting all roadways bus operations across Uttarakhand. They emphasized that the state government and administration will be held solely responsible for the complete disruption of public transportation services that follows.
