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Trade union strike closes down banks and airports in India

A nationwide strike called by employees of India's leftist trade unions affected services yesterday at airports and in the banking sector.

Several private airlines cancelled flights, but the hardest-hit city was Calcutta, capital of leftist-governed West Bengal state, where transport services, including flights and buses, came to a halt and shops closed, the PTI news agency reported.

The striking unions have about 40,000 members, mostly employees of state-run concerns, including banks, the insurance sector and the Airport Authority of India.

The strike was called to protest the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government's economic liberalization moves, including the proposed privatization of Delhi's and Mumbay's airports, divestment of state-run companies and changes in labor laws.

The unions are affiliated with the government's communist allies, who provided crucial support to the UPA, enabling it to form the government after general elections in May last year.

The left, however, claimed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government has been deviating from a common minimum program -- especially on economic measures -- agreed upon after the elections last year.

"This strike is meant as a warning to the government," said M.K. Pandhe, president of the Center for Trade Unions. "Unless it goes for a comprehensive review of its policies, we will call for bigger action."

Riot police were guarding the domestic and international airport terminals in the Indian capital as employees of the Airport Authority gathered in groups there and shouted slogans.

A civil aviation ministry spokesman said the strike had minimal impact while leaders of the Airport Authority's employee union claimed success in closing down operations.
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