BENGALURU: Upset over change of shift timings, a 33-year-old BMTC bus conductor tried to kill herself by consuming poison at Sumanahalli BMTC Depot (no. 31) on Thursday.Following the incident, over 100 drivers and conductors staged a protest demanding suspension of the depot manager. Around 80 trips were also cancelled.
Jyothi, the conductor, is undergoing treatment at a hospital and her condition is said to be stable. She has been working as a BMTC conductor for the last 14 years at Sumanahalli depot for last six years. She was deputed in the first shift (6am to 1pm) all these years. It is said that the depot manager, Prashanth, had changed her shift from 8am to 8 pm from Thursday, accusing her “of not bringing revenue.”
“Jyothi had come to work for the first shift even on Thursday but the manager did not assign her duty and asked her to report for the general shift. Jyothi told him that she had a three-year-old child and requested him not to change her shift timings. However, the manager did not pay heed. After waiting for a few hours, Jyothi consumed poison in the depot around 1.30 pm. The depot staff rushed her to a nearby hospital. Other drivers and conductors boycotted work and staged a protest demanding suspension of the manager,” a conductor said. Senior BMTC officials rushed to the depot and tried to convince the agitators.
But the protesters complained that the manager was harassing them for not bringing revenue by not granting leaves and changing shifts frequently. Later, senior officials promised the leaders of the workers’ union of prompt action against the manager. Only after that did the agitators call off the protest and returned to work at 9 pm.