Karnataka Govt bans RTC employees strike as stalemate continues
Bengaluru, Apr 9: The Karnataka government on Friday banned with immediate effect the indefinite strike by employees of road transport corporations over wage related issues, which completed its third day, affecting bus services across the state.
Citing inconvenience caused to the public and the strike being against the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, the Labour department issued the ban orders.
The dispute has been referred to the industrial tribunal, Bengaluru, for adjudication, it added
Earlier in the day, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa appealed to the employees to resume work even as he made it clear that it was not possible to meet their demand for wages as per the Sixth Pay Commission.
Also ruling out any talks, he asked them not to be stubborn under "someone's influence" and understand the financial difficulties of the government in the present situation and cooperate by resuming services, in the interest of the public.
"I request the transport workers with folded hands..don't be stubborn under someone's influence.
Last year, despite COVID related issues when your corporations didn't have money to pay your salaries, we paid it by utilising Rs 2,300 crore from the exchequer," Yediyurappa told reporters here.
The CM clarified that implementation of the sixth pay commission report for RTC workers was not possible under any circumstances in the given situation.
With the government reiterating its stand on wages as per the Sixth Pay Commission, RTC employees decided to continue with the strike on Saturday as well.
Kodihalli Chandrashekhar, honorary president of Karnataka State Road Transport Employees League, said the strike would continue for the fourth day on Saturday.
He also urged the Chief Minister to hear them.
On Friday,as employees of all four transport corporations did not attend duty,buses continued to remain off roads across the state, including Bengaluru, affecting daily commuters.
Passengers travelling to and from distant areas and office-goers were the most affected.
Private buses, mini buses, maxi cabs and other transport vehicles, which authorities roped in to manage the crisis and help commuters, provided services to those stranded in different parts of the city and the state.
However, the number of passengers using private buses continued to remain low in the city, as people used their own vehicles or cabs, the Metro and auto rickshaws, especially in the city areas, private operators said.
The Metro has increased the frequency of its services between 7 AM and 9 PM.
Amid threats of ESMA and "no work no pay", a few RTC workers returned to work and buses were reportedly operating on some routes in the city, along with police escort, sources said, adding there are similar reports from some other places in the state.
The Chief Minister pointed out that 85 per cent of the government's revenue goes towards salaries for government employees, various kinds of pensions and other non-plan expenditure and only 15 per cent is available for developmental works.
"...In such a situation, transport workers should not be stubborn. We have fulfilled eight of your nine demands.
If there are any issues with those eight demands, rectifying it and seeing to it that you get its benefits is our responsibility and I will do it," he said and asked them to cooperate and get back to work.
Noting that the Transport department is for the service of the people,he asked employees to ponder over whether it was fair to remain stubborn when people are facing difficulties.
He also said that many employees are now ready to get back to work voluntarily, as he assured them security.
Transport Department Principal Secretary Anjum Parvez on Thursday had said that the daily loss because of the strike is about Rs 20 crore.
RTCs that have been warning employees against continuing with the strike have started taking action against trainee employees and are issuing notices for absence from work.
To a question on whether he will call for talks, Yediyurappa asked "whom should I talk to? Through you (media) publicly I'm requesting."
"...there is nothing remaining for talks. What is there to talk after fulfilling eight out of nine demands?
I'm not stubborn. As eight demands have been fulfilled, employees should come back and resume bus services. They should not fall prey listening to some people," he added.
On his part Kodihalli Chandrashekhar said the strike would continue until the government understands the employees' "justified demands."
He also called on employees and their families to stage a protest at district and taluk centres in front of Deputy Commissioner or Tahsildar offices at 11 am on April 12 against the government's stand.
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Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
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