HYDERABAD: For the third consecutive day, members of the Singareni Collieries Workers Union (SCWU) on Wednesday staged agitations, rasta rokos and other protest programmes, as part of their indefinite strike seeking resolution of their 47 demands.Except for some minor incidents, coal production continued without obstacles.About 65 per cent workers of the 67,000 workforce attended to duties in the first shift on Wednesday.On Tuesday, about 1.36 lakh tonnes of coal was produced as more than 55 per cent of the workers attended to their duties during the three shifts.The Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) authorities on Wednesday called on chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy to discuss the demand about sharing 25 per cent of profits with workers. The company management is likely to lead a delegation of SCWU leaders to meet the chief minister on Thursday.Last year, the SCCL shared 16 per cent of its profits (about Rs 42 crore) with the staff. The company is likely to earn a profit of Rs 300 crore this year. Of this, the workers are demanding that the management should share 25 per cent with them.Tension prevailed at many places including Kothagudem and Manuguru where the SCWU members, along with the local political leaders, obstructed transportation of coal and also workers from attending their duties.There were heated arguments between workers participating in the strike and those attending their duty.In Srirampur in Adilabad district, a worker, Komuraiah, attempted suicide by setting himself ablaze but his colleagues stopped him.Though it was decided that talks would be held on Wednesday, SCCL management in Srirampur cancelled them following violence by workers.
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