Unwilling participants in taxi strike to get Rs 500: Madan

Taxi drivers who had 'unwillingly' participated in strikes called by the CITU in August and September, would get a compensation of Rs 500 from the Progressive Taximen's Union, its president state Transport Minister Madan Mitra today said.
"The Union will give the drivers who were forced to participate in strikes called by CITU for five to six days... They had no income in those days and even the CITU could not give them anything. So our Union has decided to give them Rs 500 each," Mitra told reporters after a special convention of the Progressive Taximen's union here today.
The Union will also provide uniforms to 10,000 taxi drivers on the first-come-first-served basis, Mitra said, adding that the step was taken to send a message to all cabbies in the city.

On the taxi drivers' demand for a fare hike, the minister said that owing to the recent cut downs in diesel price, the matter would be reviewed before any concrete decision was taken.
"We know about their demands but after the diesel price was reduced four to five times recently we need to look into the matter," Mitra said.
Trinamool Congress' All India general secretary Mukul Roy, who was said to be the Chief Speaker of the meeting, however, skipped it.