Will attend govt panel’s meet: Rao

Mumbai: BEST commuters may continue to face hardship for at least the next two days as talks to resolve the issue have failed and the matter is now in the Bombay high court.

As political intervention failed on Thursday, the state government has intervened to resolve the issues. A senior bureaucrat said that the strike may continue till Sunday, and the BEST workers’ union members will be called for a meeting Saturday. The state will try to understand their demands and accordingly try to come up with the solution.

“The government will have to submit the reply over the strike on Mo-nday in the high court. We will come up with the solution before it,” the bureaucrat added.  The BEST administration has witnessed revenue loss of more than Rs 12 crore in last four days.    

A day after talks between the BEST workers’ union and the authorities failed even after the intervention by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Thursday, a meeting has been called by mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar at his official residence but the BEST workers’ union did not join the meeting.

Addressing a BEST workers’ meeting in Parel on Friday, Shashank Rao, general secretary of the BEST workers’ union, said that the strike would continue. He would go to the meeting of the state government’s committee, which was formed by the high court.

Sources in the Sena said that as the matter had reached the court, the party would not vehemently pursue the matter with the Union.