Punjab Finance Minister engages transport unions to resolve concerns

Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema today directed the Transport Department to hold a meeting with various unions of the department in the next 15 days to consider their demands and submit a concrete report to the Cabinet Sub-Committee headed by him. Following this directive, the striking Transport Department unions announced the withdrawal of their strike.

The Finance Minister issued these directions during the meeting with the unions at Punjab Bhawan, which lasted for about two hours. The meeting was also attended by Transport Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar, Secretary of Transport Varun Roojam, Director of State Transport-cum-Managing Director of PUNBUS Rajiv Gupta, and Managing Director of PRTC Bikramjit Singh Shergill.

The Finance Minister was presented with detailed demands and issues by the Punjab Roadways PUNBUS/PRTC Contract Workers Union (25/11) and Punjab Roadways/PUNBUS State Transport Workers Union (1/19). After taking into consideration the demands and issues raised by the union leaders, the Finance Minister directed the Transport Department to resolve the department-level issues as soon as possible and hold a meeting with the union leaders in the next 15 days regarding the main issues of the unions and submit a concrete report to the Cabinet Sub-Committee headed by him, to facilitate the resolution of legitimate issues.

The Finance Minister assured the union leaders that the Punjab government under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann is making every possible effort to resolve the issues of the employees that have been pending for decades. In view of these instructions given by the Finance Minister, the Transport Department unions announced the withdrawal of the strike.

The meeting was attended by representatives from both unions, including State President Harminder Singh, State General Secretary Gurmukh Singh, Senior Vice President Jaspal Singh Bajwa, and State Cashier Jagdeep Singh from Punjab Roadways/Punbus State Transport Workers Union (1/19), and President Resham Singh Gill, Secretary Shamsher Singh, Senior Vice Presidents Harkesh Kumar, Baljinder Singh, and Jagjit Singh, Vice President Harjinder Singh, Joint Secretary Jagtar Singh, and Cashiers Ramandeep Singh and Baljit Singh from Punjab Roadways/Punbus/PRTC Contract Workers Union (25/11).