Public transport system was severely disrupted in Delhi on Wednesday as a strike by contractual Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) drivers entered its second day, leaving thousands of commuters waiting for hours at bus stops, paying significantly more for alternative transport and adding hours to their daily journeys.
The disruption was particularly difficult for elderly commuters. “I have been here at the bus stop for almost an hour. Also Read I Delhi government to build hostels for 10,000 students: CM’s big announcement days after Satya Niketan PG collapse For many, the disruption meant an unexpected increase in their daily travel expenses. Ishita Bijalwan, 18, a resident of Pandav Nagar, said her mother had to take an e-rickshaw after failing to find a bus while taking her brother to school in Preet Vihar. For Mohd Sajid, 35, a tailor working in Mayur Vihar, the strike turned a ₹ 30-40 daily commute into a much more expensive journey. “I hardly spend around ₹ 15-20 on a single side journey. Today, just travelling one way in an auto cost me ₹ 120. At another bus stop, 79-year-old Devi Prasad said he had already been waiting for nearly an hour. The union said more than 32,000 employees, including around 10,000 drivers and 20,000 conductors, were participating.
“My mother ended up spending around ₹ 100-120 on the commute today,” she said. At this age, interchanging metros with two bags is difficult,” Prasad said. Lalit Choudhary, president of the DTC Employees’ Union, said, “We had called the strike for Tuesday but more drivers joined in on the second day. Many drivers who had taken buses out of their depots this morning, returned,” he said. “The issue of the drivers is with the concessionaire and we are working on resolving it,” a senior DTC official said.
