Karnataka Bus Strike Called Off; Employees Settle For 12.5 Percent Hike

After three days of mayhem and citizens of Karnataka left crippled without public transport, the road transport employees have called off the strike and settled for a hike of 12.5 percent.

The state road transport employees declared an indefinite strike on Monday, demanding a salary hike of 35 percent. This forced schools and colleges across the state to close down for three days and left day-to-day life difficult for people depending on buses as the sole means of transport.

After a meeting was held by authorities and employees, buses finally began rolling out at approximately 5 pm on Wednesday evening, escorted by police personnel. The three day bus strike also resulted in losses for the government that amounted to crores.

Also, the transport department employees will now be allowed to opt for transfers across the four corporations, which was not permitted earlier. The government has agreed to look into all other demands in the coming 20 days.

Schools and colleges will now function normally and the Bangalore University will now resume the undergraduate and postgraduate exams, that was put on hold due to the bus strike.