Oil Strike hits aviation, petrol pump, industries

The strike of Oil Sector Officer’s Association (OSOA) – an association of nearby 55,000 officers and employees of Oil and Gas Marketing Companies – is commencing to show its impact on second day as most of the petrol pump are reportedly reached at edge of dryness and can face severe crisis if supply of fuels can not be resumed soon.
The report from aviation sector is also not good. Official sources from Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport, Delhi has informed that flights were being late due to delay and dearth of Aviation fuel supply while reports from several parts of Delhi have stated that the oil crisis in the petrol pumps can be reached to acute level tomorrow as toady was holiday (due to Muharram) and demand was half in comparison of other days.
The officers and employees of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) had called a nationwide strike on Wednesday, demanding higher wages as OSOA had alleged the government was considering to approve lower salary structure in comparison of the Central government’s officers.
However, the Centre has stated this strike ‘illegal’ and Delhi High Court has ordered to arrest the leaders involved in strikers under Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA); even though the strike has entered in the second day defying the Delhi High Court’s order and because of continuous failure of talks between the OSOA leaders and high level ministerial committee headed by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram.
The Delhi and Assam government have reportedly arrested two OSOA leaders while the companies have sacked as much as 20 employees – 11 from the ONGC, and three each from IOC, BPCL and GAIL. All these companies, including HPCL, are public sector undertaking (PSU) companies and control almost entire procedure of production, transportation and supplying of transport fuels, natural gas and domestic crude oil.
The government, on the other hand, informed that Chidambaram was reviewing the situation erupted from the strikes of oil sector executives and truckers by convening a high level meeting with Cabinet Secretary, Petroleum Secretary and Transport Secretary. But OSOA has reported no progress in the talk as government is not ready to accept its demand, and the strike will continue until government accept its demands.
08/12/08 Newstrack India

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Jan 2009