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By:

Correspondent

23 August 2024 at 4:29:04 pm

Hostage City

For a city that prides itself on never stopping, Mumbai has been brought to a grinding halt by the stoppage of one of its most indispensable services. The indefinite strike by employees of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking has effectively paralysed the city’s bus network, leaving millions of commuters stranded and exposing deep fissures in the management of one of India’s largest urban transport systems. BEST ferries around 25 lakh passengers daily through a...

Hostage City

For a city that prides itself on never stopping, Mumbai has been brought to a grinding halt by the stoppage of one of its most indispensable services. The indefinite strike by employees of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking has effectively paralysed the city’s bus network, leaving millions of commuters stranded and exposing deep fissures in the management of one of India’s largest urban transport systems. BEST ferries around 25 lakh passengers daily through a fleet of nearly 2,800 buses. Yet over the past three days, the city has witnessed the near-total collapse of this network. On the first day of the strike, only a few dozen buses operated. By the weekend, not a single BEST-owned or wet-lease bus was on the roads. Local trains, Metro services, taxis and autorickshaws have been forced to absorb the shock and are predictably straining under the burden. The strike may be illegal under the Maharashtra Essential Services Maintenance Act (MESMA), and the industrial court may have ordered employees back to work. Yet laws and court orders cannot substitute for sound governance. When a public utility reaches the point where thousands of workers are willing to risk disciplinary action and legal consequences, it signals a failure that predates the strike itself. The demands raised by the unions are hardly new. Employees have long sought implementation of the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations, settlement of retirement dues, an end to contractualisation and the merger of the BEST budget with that of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Whether one agrees with every demand is beside the point. What is striking is that these issues have been allowed to fester for years without a credible roadmap for resolution. Equally troubling is the government’s reactive approach. Ministers and officials rushed into negotiations only after services collapsed and public inconvenience reached intolerable levels. Such crisis management has become a familiar feature of governance. The unions, too, must recognise the wider consequences of their actions. Public transport is the bloodstream of a city. Every day the strike continues, daily wage earners lose income and ordinary citizens bear higher travel costs. The disruption disproportionately hurts those who can least afford alternatives. Holding Mumbai hostage may attract attention to legitimate grievances, but also risks eroding public sympathy. Mumbai has spent years celebrating new Metro corridors, coastal roads and grand infrastructure projects. Yet the humble bus remains the most affordable and accessible mode of transport for millions. Policymakers often treat BEST as an ageing institution to be managed rather than a vital public service to be strengthened. The increasing reliance on contract workers and wet-lease operations may reduce immediate costs, but also weakens institutional stability and labour relations. A city of Mumbai’s scale cannot afford a public transport system perpetually balanced on the edge of financial distress, labour unrest and administrative uncertainty. Nor can it depend on emergency measures whenever disputes arise.

The Quarrelling Siblings

Updated: Nov 12, 2024

Amol and Ashish

Saoner in Nagpur is seeing a face-off between two brothers. Amol and Ashish, both doctors, are contesting against each, one as an Independent and the other as a BJP candidate. The move is likely to confuse the voters who will have two candidates by the same surname and from the same family.


The two are the sons of former senior Congress leader from Nagpur, Ranjeet Arvindbabu Deshmukh who held the position as state unit president of the party on two occasions and has been the president of Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC). He was first elected to the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in 1985. During his early days in the Congress, he was known for his good relations with Sanjay Gandhi. In the 1990s, Deshmukh led a campaign demanding statehood for Vidarbha, a demand that occasionally erupts even today.


During his tenure, Deshmukh has held several portfolios such as rural development, education, health, agriculture and textiles. He is known to have pioneered village cleanliness drives and held portfolios in the Congress-led governments in the state for almost two decades.


Both his sons are in politics; his older son Dr Ashish Deshmukh contested from Katol in 2014 on a BJP ticket. He lost the elections from Ramtek in 2019 though. He was later suspended from the Congress for a period of six years for making statements criticising Rahul Gandhi. He has been involved with various social organisations such as Youth for India, no tobacco drives and the Vidarbha Progressive Farmers Association. Ranjeet’s younger son Dr Amol Deshmukh had contested as a member of the NCP. A medical doctor by education, he holds a Masters degree in Management from the UK and had earlier served in government-run health projects in Vietnam, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and Nepal.


Now in 2024, the two brothers will contest from Saoner. While Ashish is a nominee of the BJP, Amol is contesting as an Independent after the Congress denied him a ticket. While there is no known rift between the brothers, the decision to contest against each other ensures that at least one member of the family goes to the legislative assembly.

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