General Strike Of Workers Spread And Intensify Creating History

By Dr. Gyan Pathak

India witnessed on Thursday February 12 the most intensified of all India general strike of workers in the country so far in which over 30 crores workers were estimated to have participated in about 600 districts of the country, surpassing the record of July 9, 2025 general strike in which over 25 crore workers had participated in about 550 districts of the country. This is the 5th general strike since passage of the four controversial labour codes (one passed in 2019 and the three in 2020), against the workers have been protesting demanding their withdrawal. The Union Government of India announced that full implementation of the labour codes will be rolled out from April 1, 2026.

The strike was called by the joint platform of 10 Central Trade Union (CTUs) – INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC. The umbrella organization of farmers Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), Banks employees association, and many sectoral organisations participated in the strike. Though the strike impacted all the industrial and mining areas of all states in the country, the worst hit states were Assam, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Kerala, Odisha, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Jharkhand.

Workers and farmers took to streets in several states to protest against the anti-labour policies of the Union Government led by PM Narendra Modi. Congress and left parties have also supported the workers’ strike. MGNREGA and scheme workers in several states have also participated in the strike.

Public transport services and buses in states like Tami Nadu and Kerala were either suspended or disrupted. Banks, government offices, and schools are also shut or operating at reduced capacity in several regions of the country. Marches and demonstrations are reported in major cities, though the impact varied by region.

Significant disruptions in everyday services were witnessed in over 600 districts in the country, which affected not only public transport, but also banking services, while postal and insurance sectors reported major stoppages or reduced services.

Workers in Tamil Nadu blocked rail and road transports in several areas, which affected several cities. In Maharashtra, State Transport Workers’ Union protested at Mumbai Central. Parts of Andhra Pradesh was also affected, especially its industrial cities. Gujarat also witnessed protests in several cities, including Ahmedabad and Vadodara.

Workers protests were most strongly felt in Kerala, where normal life came nearly to halt in Kannur and Kasaragod districts.

Karnataka also witnessed intensified workers protests across the states. In Bengaluru, police even detained trade union leaders and workers protesting outside the Town Hall. Public transport in Telangana were also impacted, while significant disruption were seen in the industrial areas.

Trade Unions hit the streets in several cities of Jharkhand. Mining and industrial areas were particularly affected.

In a significant development in Madhya Pradesh, over 25,000 civilian defence staff reported to work an hour late as protest against the anti-labour policies of the government. The All India Defence Employees Federation (AIDEF) said that over 25,000 civilian workers posted at six ordinance factories in the state, the 506 Army Base Workshop, the Central Ordnance Depot and Military Engineer Services reported an hour late. AIDEF said that they could not observe a complete daylong strike as defence production and related work fall under the essential services category.

In Odisha, transport services hit hare. Buses and auto-rickshaws not operating widely. Road blockades reported in cities such as Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Rourkela. Markets and normal life disrupted with commercial establishments closed.

There was near-total shutdown in Kerala. Public buses (eg KSRTC) and auto services were off the roads and many shops and public services were closed. Schools, banks and government offices were reported either shut or operating minimally, with essential services exempted.

In several parts of Assam there were complete closure in several cities and semi-urban areas with heavy participation by trade unions.

Strong presence of Trade Unions in West Bengal led to significant disruption in markets, public services, and transport, and services available were limited.

The reports coming from Punjab suggested massive participation of industrial workers, agriculture workers and farmers, as major unions have joined the Bandh.

The importance of this general strike lies in its political, economic and social significance – just a one-day shutdown. This unprecedented strike signals that the organized labour remains a major mobilizing force in India despite growing informalisation of the workforce. The CTUs have clearly shows their capacity for nationwide coordination, while workers solidarity across the sectors and states shows that they are ready to intensify their protest if the government goes ahead with roll out of full implementation of the labour codes from April 1. The CTUs have already threatened multiple day general strike if government implements the labour codes.

CTUs have been demanding immediate withdrawal of the labour codes that have made hiring and firing easier, weakened collective bargaining, raised threshold for layoffs without government approval, and diluted inspection and compliance mechanism that goes against the labour force. (IPA Service)

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