Punjab bus strike troubles passengers at Chandigarh ISBT-43

Passengers at the Inter-State Bus Terminus (ISBT) in Sector 43 here were a harried lot as the contractual employees of the Punjab Roadways, Punbus and Pepsu Road Transport Corporation (PRTC) went on a strike this morning.

In the absence of regular state-owned roadway buses, passengers had to face a lot of inconvenience to reach their respective destinations in Punjab and other states.

Punjab-bound passengers were in particular the most inconvenienced, as few Punjab Roadways buses operated from the Sector 43 bus stand. "Whatever buses that are running from the bus stand are already overcrowded. I haven't been able to board any bus for the past one hour," said a hassled Tarsem Singh, a resident of Sangrur. 

However, many passengers said instead of waiting for the government bus, which were few in numbers, they decided to board private buses or hire a taxi reach their destination.

To clear the rush of passengers at the ISBT-43, several private buses were pressed into service. Buses of other states plied as usual on inter-state routes, including Punjab, said an official at the bus stand.

A resident of Nayagoan in Mohali, Amrit Kaur, who has to go to Batala for a function at her relative’s place, said the government should have made alternative arrangements for the convenience of passengers.

Daily commuters were the most affected by the strike. Rajnish Kumar, who travels daily to Ropar to work in a factory, said instead of reaching late for work, he availed of a daylong leave. “Even if I have managed to reach the factory somehow, I would have faced the same problem while coming back in the evening. So, I have decided to take a leave,” he said, adding that the government should resolve the issue at the earliest so that he and other commuters like him could reach their the workplaces on time.