18 June,2026 09:17 AM IST | Mumbai | Rajendra B. Aklekar
BEST union workers meet ahead of the call for strike. Pics/Rajendra Aklekar
The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking on Wednesday invoked the Maharashtra Essential Services Maintenance Act, 2023, as 12 employee unions have threatened to go on an indefinite strike from the midnight of June 18 over their long-pending demands.
BEST union leader Uday Ambonkar said that if BEST services were being treated as essential, "It was high time the employees too were treated at par with the BMC".
The committee of 12 worker bodies has warned that failure to resolve all outstanding demands within the deadline will result in an "indefinite strike", with the possibility that employees from both the transport and electricity divisions will join the agitation.
Uday Ambonkar, union leader, BEST Action Committee
The state government enacts MESMA to ensure that the daily lives of citizens and public safety are not jeopardised by labour unions or employee protests. The BEST undertaking invoked the MESMA Act, under which both uninterrupted transport services across Greater Mumbai and uninterrupted electricity supply to the city are classified as "essential services".
There are several pending demands. And if you look carefully, in the MESMA order, the BEST is calling its transport and electric services essential; then they should treat their employees too at par with this and give them benefits that Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) employees get.
It is high time the BEST and the BMC need to come together to draw an action plan to save the undertaking. We have formed an action committee of 14 labour bodies. We have given a memorandum to the mayor as well. A few key demands are the clearing of dues of R1410 crore to retired employees. We have asked for an interim raise of R1500 for employees.
Implementation of the 8th Pay Commission when it comes. Scrap the wet lease model, take charge of all the buses, and merge all the wet lease employees into BEST. Recruitment of 3000 conductors into the BEST. Lots of pending decisions have to be taken.
In 2017, the state decided to merge the BEST budget into the BMC budget. The BMC has sanctioned the proposal. The BEST budget should have been merged with that of the BMC, as it has been done by the railways. But no action has been taken on this. The proposal is pending with the urban development department. We have requested its expedition. Once the proposal happens, all monetary problems faced by the BEST will get solved.
All branch and department heads have been directed to deny all leave applications - of any kind - from June 18 onwards until the strike is formally withdrawn. The management has, however, clarified that the leave ban will not apply to employees already on pre-approved leave before June 18, those on medical/sick leave with valid justification, or cases where reasons have been deemed satisfactory by the department head. Requests for changes in weekly offs or shift timings on the day of the strike will also not be entertained without proper verification, the undertaking stated.
>> Clearing of Rs 1410 crore due to retired employees
>> Interim raise of Rs 1500 for current employees
>> Implementation of 8th pay commission
>> Scrapping of wet lease model
>> Recruitment of 3000 conductors
Teen sawal with Uday Ambonkar, union leader, BEST Action Committee
