AIADMK, PMK slam T.N. government move to recruit bus drivers, conductors from manpower agencies

AIADMK leader condemns TN State Transport Corporations' plan to privatize and recruit bus drivers and conductors through private agencies.

AIADMK general secretary and Leader of the Opposition Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Wednesday, June 20, condemned the T.N. State Transport Corporations plan to recruit bus drivers and conductors on a contract basis, through private manpower agencies.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Mr. Palaniswami said there were suspicions that the DMK government was planning to privatise State Transport Corporations and as a first phase, the Transport Corporations were seeking to recruit bus drivers and conductors on a contract basis.

He called for the cancellation of contracts sought for by Zonal Transport Corporations in Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Nagercoil to recruit drivers and conductors from manpower agencies.

Mr. Palaniswami also urged the DMK government to drop any plans it had for privatisation, undertake recruitment in a proper manner, fulfill the demands of Transport Corporation employees and upgrade the infrastructure of the Transport Department to ensure smooth service for the public.

In a separate post, ADMK Workers Rights Retrieval Committee coordinator O. Panneerselvam also condemned the move and said this was against the principle of social justice.

He sought Chief Minister M K Stalin’s intervention to cancel the tender seeking for recruitment from manpower agencies.

PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss on Wednesday, June 20, recalled how the DMK had opposed the appointment of drivers and conductors on a contract basis for the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation while it was in the Opposition but said it was now implementing the same policy, which has been criticised by the Madras High Court for ‘encouraging labour exploitation’, in Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and Nagercoil.