HYDERABAD: It seems that on the 20th day of the TSRTC strike, the passengers have finally been pushed to their tipping point. Frustrated that only two buses turned up at the Nalgonda X roads at peak morning hours despite waiting for hours together, enraged commuters blocked the roads at around 8.30 am on Thursday and prevented the traffic from moving ahead. The move was made in a bid to highlight their plight.
The small mutiny was captured on camera. “We have been waiting endlessly. The contention maybe between the government and the TSRTC workers, but it is we who are suffering,” said an agitated protestor.
Others followed suit and showed their monthly bus pass that subsidises travel for the month. “It is not the RTC or the government who is suffering. It is us, the common people. This is unacceptable. I paid for this pass and now it’s of no use,” added another commuter.
Curious passengers facing the same plight joined them and called for more buses to be immediately deployed. They also got into arguments with drivers in cars and autos, who argued that the strike was not their fault and questioned why they were being punished with the demonstrations. However, the protestors continued to vent their anger in the best way they knew.
The passengers’ plight has been deplorable with the RTC managing to put barely 600-700 buses on the streets of Hyderabad. This is significantly lower compared to the 3,000-bus fleet that previously catered to the city, and was found to be insufficient for the suburbs.