Chandigarh, November 17, 2025 — Contractual employees of Punjab Roadways and Pepsu Road Transport Corporation (PRTC) went on strike on Monday, disrupting services across the state and affecting thousands of commuters. The walkout by workers of Punjab Roadways, Punbus, and the PRTC Contract Workers’ Union came amid demands for job regularisation and the cancellation of a kilometre-based scheme.
The strike forced many commuters to rely on private bus operators. Women who usually benefit from the state’s free travel scheme said they had no choice but to buy tickets.
Balbir Singh, 55, a resident of Tanda, recounted the inconvenience. “After my wife’s eye surgery in Hoshiarpur, we reached the bus stand in the afternoon and had already been waiting for half an hour when we learned that Roadways buses had gone off the roads at noon. My wife would have travelled free in a government bus, but now we had no choice but to board a private bus and pay the fare,” he said.
Punbus contractual employees also staged a protest at the Punjab Roadways workshop. Addressing the gathering, union district president Raminder Singh said, “We oppose the kilometre-based scheme, demand the cancellation of the tenders issued under it, and seek regularisation of our contractual jobs.”
The protest was called off later in the evening after an assurance from the government that Transport Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar would meet union representatives on November 19 to discuss their demands.
However, Raminder Singh warned, “If the government fails to respond, we will intensify the agitation.”
