No impact in Karur district

More than 85 per cent of the government buses went off the roads and private buses made a killing by overcharging passengers on most of the routes. Despite hectic efforts, district administration officials could ensure only skeletal services of government buses throughout the day. 

At Thanjavur, the strike was near total as 95 per cent of the crew abstained from work. However, the attendance at the depots were slightly higher. Meanwhile, in Tiruchy region, more than 90 per cent of the buses did not hit the roads. The ever-busy bus stands in Tiruchy, Pudukkottai, Thanjavur, Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur wore a deserted look. 

However, in Karur district, the home town of Transport Minister MR Vijayabhaskar, the situation was completely in contrast to the other places. Nearly, 90 per cent of the buses were operated on Monday. Transport department sources said that the minister had instructed officials to take all necessary steps to operate the buses. In the rest of the central districts, only private buses, which were making a killing, were seen on the roads. The fare was Rs 10 more than normal prices in private buses. 

Meanwhile, the district administration has reportedly asked the school managements to send their van drivers to operate the state government buses. Some of the schools were reluctant to depute their drivers without proper authorisation from the RTOs. 

The striking workers staged demonstrations in front of the depots in Thanjavur and Tiruchy. In Tiruchy, when the regular employees did not report for duty, some trainee drivers were asked to operate the buses. However, the trade union members allegedly assaulted them and prevented the movement of buses. Police came to the rescue of the crew and arrested 10 union members.