Capitalist-cum-laborers, they are, but ...

Ramesh Kumar 
Salaam to my driver bhais across India!

Am sure few of them may  be aware of May Day Celebrations - commemorating the role of labor. Yes, the organized labor under various trade unions with political affiliations may engage in some form or other to celebrate May Day.

Not long haul truck drivers. For many of them on the job - ferrying goods to help in nation building activities either to the manufacturing plant or to the marketplace of the finished items - May 1, 2017 is yet another ordinary day. Like any other day.

May be he is resting outside some factory gates or warehouse/distribution centres while collar babus busy with their chores. Or may be resting inside  his  "coolest" truck cabins under the 40 plus celsius Indian summer on the edges of Indian highways or maybe a dhaba with several other truck drivers en route to his destination.

Is he aware of the significance of May Day or celebrated as International Labor Day since 1886? Guess what: the May Day has begun in the citadel of Capitalism, the United States, not the erstwhile USSR. It all began Chicagoans demanding 8 hour work at Haymarket on May 1, 1886.

Does he  aware of his rights and duties as truck driver? After all, he is a laborer.Rather strangely, in India, a major chunk of them are owner-cum-drivers: put it differently, capitalist-cum-labor - owning two factors of production, yet clubbed mostly as labor and treated as one! Nowhere in the world, this sad spectacle is on display! Middlemen exploit them to the hilt.

Do we, in India, have any special legislation for truck drivers?  Good question. Permit me to introduce S P Singh, Senior Fellow and Coordinator of Delhi-based Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training (IFTRI).

Just a week ago (April 24, 2017), this is what he posted  on his social media space:

"At a time drivers on highways are painted as villain of peace by all and sundry with suggestions to impose stringent PENALTIES, very little attention has been paid to encourage to open this vocation of commercial vehicle drivers to be educated, well trained and skilled , but can happen if for laborious and responsible job, the truck driver is paid wages, emoluments and working hours in consistent with THE MOTOR TRANSPORT WORKERS ACT WHICH MANDATES THAT TRANSPORTERS EMPLOYING 5 or MORE WORKERS must adhere to the law . At present, as per conservative estimates, out of 2.5 Lakh transport firms/ Transport intermediaries/ fleet owners, hardly 5-7? of them follow the minimum wage and social security rules.

2. Hence, the move to check fatique and performance through intelligent seat device developed by IIT-Madras is a step in right direction. The IFTRT suggests that this Intellseat must have system to check if driver is drunk or under the influence of drugs apart from important intelligent features is carries. 

3. Though it may not be directly connected to this new Intelligent Seat by IIT-Madras, it should be mandatory for OEMs to supply goods carriers with fully factory built up driver cabin with this Intellseat, which must have alcohol detection alarm as well.

4. A factor which is missing is to ensure truck drivers to have potable clean water through their regular long journey on highways . This, OEMs must fit. WATER PURIFIER IN DRIVERS' CABIN AS MANDATORY REQUIREMENT,SO HEALTHY DRIVER IS SAVED FROM WATER-BORNE DISEASES AND SHALL HELP TO IMPROVE DRIVERS'  PERFORMANCE AND REDUCE  DRIVING FATIGUE.

5. While Government is more keen to have air-conditioned truck drivers cabin, it must issue ORDINANCE  to have mandatory fittement of Water purifiers in driver cabin and the existing trucks  be directed in a time frame to retrofit water purifier, which is low cost solution to keep healthy and save him from regular water-borne deceases,they suffer and it's affecting their performance.

6. Unfortunately, Government is intriguingly silent on ensuring minimum wage, social security benefits and working hours, providing water purifier in driver's cabin; instead Government is more keen in removing educational qualification for procurement of CV license to "ensure" low cost drivers { read Motor Vehicles( amendment) Bill, 2016 }, and indirectly making The Motor Transport Workers Act redundant to suit the designs of fleet owners' powerful lobby.

Fact remains, when basics are misplaced with transport workers being used as "bonded labour" , then mere modern Transport intelligence systems like having Intellseat by IIT-Madras loses its relevance and sincere digital effort to judge drivers' accountability, fatigue and performance, when transporters/fleet owners remain out of the mandatory ambit of Motor Transport Workers Act and also Carriage By Road Act, 2007."Today is May 1, 2017. More than 50 years a piece of legislation in this regard was passed.

Well, this is what I had written in the maiden issue of DRIVERS DUNIYA (September 2015) issue titled "Just on Paper":Fleet owners will be ready to procure several lakh worth of heavy commercial vehicles, paying usurious interest rates. Ask them about what kind of social contract they have with their drivers, they will be dumb-founded because they don’t believe – yes, that is the right word – in social obligations. Otherwise, long haul drivers should be on the master pay roll of these companies with social security benefits such as provident fund, medical/healthcare, retirement plan etc. This is not the case. Forget about all these long term bonanza. When executives of companies travel on duty, they have a structure of Dearness Allowance and Travelling Allowance etc. But for long haul drivers who are euphemistically called ‘business partners’ by some at least, there are no such basic facilities.

One motor malik brusquely asked: “Where is the need? Is he not supposed to drive always?” How do one respond to such indifference except with a look of pity at the questioner. Rich he is money wise, but absolutely bankrupt otherwise. Is the long haul driver supposed to behind the steering of moving truck 24 hours? Considering that motor maliks are bludgeoning the move to go in for double driver format for national permit vehicles with the government playing benevolent brother or turning a blind eye citing that they find it difficult to hire even one driver, don’t the existing drivers need rest for a few hours on a daily basis when they are on the move? Are there not any legislative sanctions in this regard? Good question.

Actually, there is a piece of legislation aptly titled The Motor Transport Workers Act 1961 ... Yes, this is on the statute, passed during the first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s era. Since then, we had half a dozen political worthies occupying the hot seat in Lutyen’s Delhi. National Highways have come up. Vehicles got upgraded. Quality of fuel has improved considerably. But …. Status quo as far as driver comfort is concerned. Despite the 1961 Act categorically talking about wayside amenities, there is nothing on the ground.

The  Act, gazette on 20th May 1961 after being passed by both Houses of Parliament and came into force as Act 27 in Circa 1961.  Why such a piece of legislation in the first place? “There are at present certain enactments like the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 and the Factories Act 1948 which cover certain sections of motor transport workers and certain aspects of their conditions of employment. There is, however, no independent legislation applicable to motor transport workers as a whole or for regulating the various aspects of their conditions of employment work and wages. It is considered desirable to have a separate legislative measure for motor transport workers which would cover matters like medical facilities, welfare facilities, hours of work, spread-over, rest periods, overtime, annual leave with pay etc. on the analogy of similar enactments for workers in factories, mines and plantations. The present Bill is intended to achieve this object,” (emphasis mine) the government said I its statement of objects and reasons while seeking Parliament approval.

Chapter IV under the sub-head of ‘Welfare and Health’, it reads asunder:

“In every place wherein motor transport workers employed in a motor transport undertaking are required to halt at night, there shall be provided and maintained by the employer for the use of those motor transport workers such number of rest rooms or such other suitable alternative accommodation, as may be prescribed.
The rest rooms or the alternative accommodation to be provided under sub-section (1) shall be sufficiently lighted and ventilated and shall be maintained in a clean and comfortable condition.

The state government may prescribe the standards in respect of construction, accommodation, furniture and other equipment of rest rooms or the alternative accommodation to be provided under this section."



Yes, yes. These provisions are well scripted and etched in our legal framework. But who bothers? Not motor maliks. Not government. Truck drivers, being unorganized (which motor maliks love the most!), are therefore voiceless. Being nomadic in a manner of speaking, they don't constitute a solid vote bank and hence politicians have no interest in them.

At the drop of the hat, many transporters would point to Ramesh Agarwal's Dudu/Rajasthan Driver Seva Kendra. Yes, he is doing a fantastic job. But one Ramesh Agarwal does not make a summer. His own tribe are not ready to emulate him when it comes to driver welfare.

That's where I see a silverlining in the burgeoning online freight exchanges. These IIT-IIM grads, entering the unorganized transport segment, are talking about driver welfare right from the word 'go' because they know in the heart of hearts that unless and until you take care of this specie (read drivers), your future is bleak.

Rivigo, owning 2000 trucks, is on a massive driver-friendly activities. Wish others follow this new babe. Sooner the better.

Well, that's enough for this May Day 2017.