TGSRTC union elections began across Telangana on Friday after a gap of nearly a decade, with around 35,000 employees expected to vote at 115 polling booths set up across the corporation’s depots. The election will determine the recognised union for workers of the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation, a workforce whose operations directly support bus services across the state.
The polling is being conducted under security arrangements made by TGSRTC for all depots, according to a report by Deccan Chronicle – South. Twelve unions are contesting the election, with the principal contest involving the Employees Union, Telangana Mazdoor Union, National Mazdoor Union and Telangana RTC workers, among others. Several unions have also formed alliances.
The contest has political backing from different groups, including the ruling Congress, left parties, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi and the Bharatiya Janata Party, the report said. The election therefore brings the corporation’s workforce representation back into a formal electoral process after the prolonged gap.
The electorate includes 14,514 conductors, 13,769 drivers, 4,207 garage staff and 2,409 employees in other categories. Their roles cover the operational and maintenance functions required to keep the state bus system running, making the election relevant not only to labour relations but also to the administration of public transport services.
The Greater Hyderabad zone has the largest voter group, with 13,797 employees, followed by the Karimnagar zone with 11,392 and the Hyderabad zone with 9,303. The head office has 274 voters, while the bus body unit at Miyapur has 133. To accommodate the electorate, TGSRTC has established 32 polling booths in the Greater Hyderabad zone, 38 in the Hyderabad zone and 45 in the Karimnagar zone.
The distribution of booths reflects the concentration of employees across the corporation’s operational zones. It also places the largest administrative responsibility on the Hyderabad-region polling arrangements, where the combined voter base is substantial. The corporation’s security planning is intended to ensure that voting proceeds smoothly across the depots.
The return of union elections provides workers with an organised mechanism to choose representation after years without a comparable vote, while the large participation expected across drivers, conductors and maintenance staff gives the process statewide significance. The immediate operational details available are the polling arrangements, union participation and voter distribution; the report does not specify the issues on which the competing unions are campaigning.
TGSRTC is scheduled to declare the election results on October 17. Until then, polling will continue across the 115 designated booths covering the corporation’s depots and other listed units.
