AIRTWF Conference Pledges to Defend Workers, Defy Pro-Corporate Policies
R Karumalaiyan
THE 12th National Conference of the All India Road Transport Workers’ Federation (AIRTWF) concluded with a clarion call to build broader unity among road transport workers against the growing onslaughts of the ruling dispensation, its divisive politics, and pro-corporate nexus that endanger the lives and livelihoods of working people.
The conference stressed the urgent need to bring the maximum number of unions and diverse sections of workers – drivers, conductors, technicians, and others engaged across the vehicle-driving spectrum – onto a common platform to protect the road transport sector, the lifeline of the economy against monopoly corporations seeking to swallow this highly decentralised sector, which ranges from small autos and taxis to heavy logistics vehicles, and from passenger services to goods carriers, thereby threatening the livelihoods of millions.
The conference was held from July 29-31, 2025, in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. It was preceded by a massive rally and a public meeting on July 28 at Putharikandam Maidan, addressed by CITU national secretaries Swadesh Dev Roye and R Karumalaiyan.
The conference began with flag hoisting by K K Divakaran, working president of AIRTWF, followed by the inaugural session. Kadakampally Surendran, MLA and former minister from Kerala and working chairperson of the Reception Committee, welcomed the delegates and guests. Tapan Sen, general secretary of CITU, inaugurated the conference, which was attended by 508 delegates representing 19 states.
Fraternal greetings were extended by leaders of transport federations from AICCTU, TUCC, LPF, the Independent Staff Federation, and the All India Transport Departments’ Staff Federation. International solidarity was expressed by delegates from Vietnam, Laos, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. Ali Reza from Turkey (president) and Matthieu from France (general secretary) of the Trade Union International (TUI) – Transport, Port, Fisheries and Communications, affiliated to the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) conveyed their solidarity and greetings to the participants.
R. Lakshmaiah, general secretary of AIRTWF, presented the general secretary’s report in two parts. 48 delegates took part in the discussions on the report. Part I provided a detailed analysis of the present scenario of the transport sector, situating it within the larger context of global capitalism and examining various segments – State-owned buses, private buses, auto-taxis, e-rickshaws, trucks, tractors, oil tankers, small goods vehicles, app-based cabs like Uber and Ola, ambulances, and school/college buses. It is estimated that around 10 crore workers are directly engaged in the sector as drivers, technicians, helpers, and conductors. These workers are the prime movers not only of vehicles but of the entire national economy, working around the clock in all weather, often at great personal risk. Yet, over 90 per cent are in the unorganised sector, denied statutory benefits like PF, ESI, and weekly rest. The eight-hour workday guaranteed under the Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961 remains a mirage for them.
They are often ill-treated and even manhandled by the police and transport officials on many occasions. Attacks by anti-social elements, particularly on truck drivers, are also on the rise. The condition of workers has become very pathetic. Due to these deplorable working conditions and the drudgery inherent in this sector, the younger generation is increasingly reluctant to take up this profession.
There are broadly two categories of workers in the private transport sector. The first and major category consists of drivers who own nothing except their labour power, which they are compelled to sell in the labour market every single day for survival. For them, even the statutory minimum wage remains a mirage. According to the Minimum Wages Act, state governments are required to fix minimum wages under their respective schedules of employment. Yet, most states fail to revise them periodically, and even where notified, implementation remains grossly inadequate. The labour departments, mandated to monitor and enforce implementation, often remain silent spectators.
The second category is the so-called owner-cum-drivers. They are the worst victims of anti-worker government policies resulting in exorbitant fuel prices, steep hikes in insurance premiums, lack of affordable credit, exploitation in the name of toll charges, and the massive increase in fees and penalties under the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019. Their incomes have been squeezed drastically in recent years. To make matters worse, the largest and most decentralised segments – autos and taxis – face ruthless competition from app-based cabs. Yet, even these cab drivers are mercilessly exploited by private app aggregators.
Given this grave precarity, the AIRTWF has been continuously intervening on major policy matters at the national level, as well as through its state federations and unions at the state level, taking up day-to-day issues of the workers. For example, when the central government attempted to criminalise professional drivers and the vehicle-driving public for even petty negligence under the new Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) – the replacement of IPC – by prescribing ten years’ imprisonment under Section 106(2), AIRTWF took the lead in building a united nationwide protest. This compelled the central government to retreat and declare that the provision would not be implemented. Similarly, on other burning issues – such as the draconian provisions of the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019, and the demand for social security coverage for the mass of unorganised transport workers – the Federation has organised massive March to Raj Bhawans in various states and a Chalo Parliament programme in Delhi.
Part-II of the general secretary’s report objectively portrayed the organisational position of the Federation. AIRTWF has a membership base of over one million spread across 19 states, with actual receipt of affiliation fees from 7,22,767 members during the year 2023.
On the last day, delegates were divided into sector-wise groups – state public sector undertakings, auto-taxi, app-based workers, goods sector, and private bus sector. Each group discussed their sector-specific issues, and the summaries of their deliberations were presented in the plenary session. The general secretary’s report, along with these summaries, was unanimously adopted.
The 12th National Conference of AIRTWF elected 35 office-bearers, including R Karumalaiyan as president, C K Harikrishnan as working president, Jiban Saha as general secretary, and K S Sunil Kumar as treasurer, as well as a 360-member general council with 155 working committee members.
The conference reaffirmed that transport is the most vital core sector – the very lifeline of society. Among all branches of transport – airways, railways, and waterways – road transport remains the largest, both in terms of workforce and contribution to the GDP. Increasing numbers of youth are entering this sector, mostly on a self-employed basis. However, due to the anti-people and pro-corporate policies of the central and many state governments, the sector has been pushed into a severe crisis. Workers and small owner-cum-drivers are bearing the brunt, and serious unrest is prevailing among them. Their readiness to take to the streets was recently demonstrated in the militant, spontaneous countrywide protest against the Modi government’s attempt to criminalise vehicle drivers under Section 106(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The conference concluded with a firm resolve to reach out to this ever-growing workforce, organise them more effectively, and resist the aggressive attacks of neo-liberalism and neo-fascism.
