Date:06/01/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/01/06/stories/2006010604450500.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

BSNL employees' strike almost total

Special Correspondent

PROTEST: The usual activity was absent at the head office of the BSNL in Bangalore on Thursday following a strike call given by the employees. The employees are protesting against, among other things, the Government's approval for increasing the FDI in the telecom sector. — Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

Bangalore: The strike by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) employees and officers at all levels was near total on Thursday. BSNL offices and telephone exchanges were almost deserted and normal activity came to a standstill during the one-day nationwide strike.

The Joint Forum of Associations and Unions of Executives and Non-executives in BSNL, Karnataka Circle, with six unions under it, supported the strike.

The office-bearers said the strike was to draw attention to the fact that deregulation and liberalisation in the telecom sector had badly hit the profitability of public sector BSNL and MTNL.

The public sector was also allowed to enter the thriving mobile scene much after the private players.

Despite these handicaps, the BSNL still provided more telephone services to rural customers than all the private operators put together, the union leaders pointed out.