Driver sets himself on fire as demands are were not met amid TGSRTC strike
Hyderabad: The ongoing Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) strike took a serious turn on Thursday, April 23, when a driver set himself ablaze at the Narsampet depot in Warangal district, after his demands to resolve their grievances fell on deaf ears.
Tensions escalated as the driver, Shankar Goud, attempted suicide by dousing himself in petrol and setting himself on fire. Surrounding RTC workers immediately rushed to his rescue and extinguished the flames engulfing Shankar.
He was shifted to a hospital for emergency treatment. His condition is believed to be critical still as he sustained 85 per cent burn injuries.
After the incident, the TGSRTC intensified its protest, and a large number of workers reached the site. Additional police teams have been deployed by the higher-ups to prevent any untoward incident.
As this had not settled, another RTC driver named Venkanna, who was participating in the protest at Nalgonda depot on Thursday, attempted to immolate himself too by dousing diesel and setting himself on fire. The police and fellow workers rescued him and immediately shifted him to the hospital.
His condition is stable and he has sustained no injuries in the suicide attempt.
Meanwhile, police arrested RTC Joint Action Committee (JAC) chairman E Venkanna, along with other key leaders, amid reports of talks between the committee and the state government.
“If the state government doesn’t respond positively, we’ll make our agitation more rigorous. We started the strike as per the guidelines. Even if the government calls for a midnight discussion, we are ready. The government should shed its laziness,” he said.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has appealed to the RTC workers not to resort to any extreme step, stressing that taking one’s own life is not a solution.
During the state cabinet meeting he chaired at Dr BR Ambedkar Telangana State Secretariat on Thursday, Revanth Reddy said that the state government was thinking in the positive direction regarding the demands put forth by the TGSRTC workers, and was committed to resolving them.
He directed Deputy Chief Minister Bhatto Vikramarka to hold talks with the TGSRTC workers’ leaders on Friday.
Addressing the media between the cabinet meeting, Roads and Buildings Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy said that “we can bring anything back, but not life if taken away.” Recalling a similar chain of suicides that happened during the RTC strike in 2019, he said that it had started after one RTC worker Srinivas Reddy died by suicide.
“After his death 36 workers took their lives. Srinivas Reddy was well settled and his two sons were in the army. He had no reason to take that extreme step. Because of his act, several others ended their lives abruptly,” he said, appealing to the RTC workers not to resort to any extreme measures.
Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar said that the RTC workers had every democratic right to protest, for which the state government had no objection to.
“Even the arrests made in some depot were caused when the workers tried to stop buses from running. There is no negative option for this government with regard to the demands raised by the workers. We are looking at every demand with a favourable view,” he assured.
TGSRTC JAC vice-chairman Thomas Reddy has said that the workers’ unions were ready to hold talks with the state government once again, while making it clear that the strike will continue till all their demands were met. He urged Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to show particular interest in resolving the issues and demands placed by the unions before the state government.
As part of the continuation of the strike, on Friday, April 24, TGSRTC workers will hold silent protests at all depots in the state. On Saturday, April 25, workers will hold mass cooking protest at all bus depots. On Sunday, April 26, the workers will hold rallies in all the districts. On Monday, April 27, the workers will issue representations to all people’s representatives. On Tuesday, April 28, the women RTC workers will hold protests with Bathukammas. On Wednesday, April 29, there will be a shirtless protest by RTC workers.
As the strike continued from Wednesday, bus services remained at a standstill across the state.
Police officers were stationed at the Thorrur RTC depot in Mahabubabad district, following an overnight protest by employees that stretched into the early morning.
A case has been registered after several employees staged a massive protest, with police arresting 22 employees.
Approximately 100 individuals participated in the protest, Thorrur police said.
Meanwhile, the situation remained tense in Jangaon district after TGSRTC employees blocked buses as part of their strike and, in turn, faced police action.
Videos of the scene show an agitated employee bending down to touch the feet of a police officer in a desperate attempt to continue the protest. The police, however, detained the employees and ensured that the buses moved under police presence.
Public transportation across Telangana came to a grinding halt as TGSRTC employees launched an indefinite strike from midnight on Wednesday, following the breakdown of crucial talks with the state government.
In response, the TGSRTC has hired private drivers to operate some buses. The government also arranged a limited number of hired buses and electric buses on busy routes in Hyderabad. However, these arrangements were not enough to meet the demand.
Due to the shortage of buses, many passengers were seen waiting at bus stops for long periods. The situation has created difficulties for office-goers and students who depend on public transport.
This post was last modified on April 23, 2026 7:36 pm