Mumbai Alert: BEST Wet Lease Staff to Vote on Strike Over Wage Inequality, Warn of Major Citywide Disruption

Mumbai:- Hundreds of contract-based bus drivers and staff working under the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking’s wet lease system are set to cast their votes today in a crucial strike ballot over wage inequality.
Organized by the Sangharsh Kamgar Karmachari Union, the vote is part of an escalating campaign demanding equal pay for equal work. The workers claim they are paid significantly less than permanent BEST employees despite performing the same duties—without job security, healthcare, or pension benefits.
Companies such as Daga Group, Mateshwari Urban Transport Solutions Pvt. Ltd., and B.V.G. India Ltd., who operate 83% of BEST’s bus fleet, have been accused of ignoring demands for fair compensation.
Only 437 of BEST’s 2,594 operational buses are owned by the undertaking, highlighting the city’s reliance on privately operated wet lease buses.
Union General Secretary Shashank Rao said the workers are fighting for more than wages—“this is a matter of constitutional equality.” The first phase of voting is being held today at five major depots, with a second phase scheduled for July 22.
If the vote favors a strike and no resolution is reached, Mumbai may face massive public transport disruptions, potentially affecting lakhs of daily commuters.