Western Railway workers call off strike

Western Railway workers call off strike 19 Dec 2008, 0038 hrs IST, TNN MUMBAI: The flash strike by motormen of Western Railway, which left thousands of suburban railway commuters stranded for over two hours, was finally called off on Thursday night. Suburban train services resumed shortly after 11 pm, after the strike was called off following discussions between motormen and railway officials, but not before angry commuters vented their ire, damaging property at some railway stations like Churchgate, Marine Lines and Andheri. At Churchgate, hundreds of stranded commuters pulled down metal detectors and smashed glass panes of the booking office. BEST operated additional services in view of the disruption of train services. Several commuters also opted for taxis to return home. "Train services had come to a standstill at 9.20pm following the flash strike", Western Railway CPRO S S Gupta said. "The motormen gave a notice for hunger protest (strike) for today but there was no intimation about this strike", he said. The motormen had refused to operate trains following the collapse of two of their colleagues during the day-long hunger strike. Over 300 motormen on the suburban line of the Western Railway (WR) participated in the agitation, demanding filling up of vacancies. Around 9.20 pm, two motormen, apparently exhausted by the hunger strike, collapsed at Churchgate. Subsequently, other motormen stepped down from their duty following which all Up and Down train services were disrupted.

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