Mother of two daughters becomes Haryana Roadways' first woman conductor
Chandigarh, Oct 28: A differently abled mother of two daughters has become the Haryana Roadways' first woman bus conductor, thanks to the ongoing strike by the state roadways employees, forcing the government to launch a recruitment drive for drivers and conductors.
32-year-old Sharmilla, hailing from a village in Rewari district, had been looking for a job for long to support her family and got it amid the ongoing strike, which has turned out to be roadways employees' longest ever.
"Both I and my husband were unemployed. We are raising two daughters. I had been looking for a job for last 8 to 10 years and when I learnt about this vacancy, I applied against it and got the job," she said.
Clad in a pair of jeans and a shirt, Sharmilla has been performing her duties after joining the Rewari depot Wednesday.
"I am very happy now. I am getting good support and respect from the people. They appreciate what I am doing," she said.
Sharmilla said she faces 40 per cent disability in one of her legs, but she has never let it stand in her way.
"I am Haryana's first lady conductor and I am so happy to get this job. I have joined my duties three days ago and have learnt most of the things related to ticketing," said Sharmilla proudly.
Sharmilla is among the two women who were recruited as bus conductors, the other one being Nirmala Rani, who has joined duty on Sirsa-Ellenabad route.
Earlier this year, 30-year-old Archana had become the first and only woman driver of the Karnal city bus service.
The Haryana Roadways employees had Thursday decided to further extend their strike till October 29 as their fresh round of talks with the government failed to make any headway.
The employees are on strike since October 16 against the government's decision to hire 700 buses from private owners.
There are about 19,000 employees in the Haryana Roadways, catering to 12 lakh passengers daily with a fleet of 4,100 buses.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
