Rawle, aided by members of the Sena-backed union, Sthaniya Lokadhikar Samiti, blocked all the three entry points to the workshop to ensure nobody attended work. A total of 5,120 workers are employed at the workshop.

The agitation began at 12 pm on Tuesday after the Samiti objected to names of only 24 Maharashtrians figuring in a list of the 103 selected for the trade apprenticeship programme. A total of 1,300 candidates had appeared for the test which is held annually.

Rawle has demanded that 80 per cent of the 103 posts be given to Maharashtrians.

Party senior and Minister of State for Railways Ram Naik did not condemn Rawle's strong-arm tactics and only appealed to Rawle to give his complaint in writing to the railways rather than resort to further disruption. Naiktold Express Newsline: ``His main grouse is that Maharashtrians are deliberately not given enough representation in jobs. I have told him that an enquiry will be conducted and if any irregularities are found in this particular exam action will be taken.''

Rawle, when contacted, said that though he would give his complaint in writing, the agitation would continue till his demand was met. ``They should either scrap the present list and hold the exams again or take 80 per cent Maharashtrians right away. I spoke to the Area General Manager S K Agarwal, Railway Board Chairman C K Agarwal and Central Railway General Manager D K Shankaran on telephone and apprised them of the seriousness of the situation but no solution has been arrived at,'' he said.

Rawle said even State Transport Minister Gajanan Kirtikar, who is also president of the Samiti, was present in today's gate meetings with workers. ``The workers have said that they would support the agitation till the injustice was done away with. About fouryears back, a similar problem had arisen at the Matunga workshop but we had taken care of it in the same manner. I am also going to meet the Chief Minister tonight in this connection,'' boasted Rawle.

Exams are held annually to take trade apprentices annually and traditionally the unions have had a say in selecting at least about 40 to 45 per cent of the candidates. This year, however, the Railways decided to get tough and denied the unions any say in the recruitment and went strictly as per the written test held last Sunday. They did away with the oral test -- details of which are not recorded and where most of the corruption in recruitments takes place. The Apprentice Training Act, 1961, (ATA) does not stipulate whether the tests should be oral or written but leaves it to the discretion of the authorities.

This loss of control in recruitments, rather than any lofty son-of-the-soil ideology, it is said to be at the centre of Rawle's agitation. Politically, too, it is Rawle's vote bank and the Shiv Senahas been trying desperately to get a toehold in the union politics of the railways through its Sthaniya Lokadhikar Samiti. ``When he doesn't refuse votes from non-Maharashtrians, why this discrimination when it comes to jobs?'' asked a senior railway official.

The workshop carries out periodic overhauling of diesel locomotives, trains, corrosion repair of coaches and manufacture of railway components among other things. An official said that apart from the loss of 48,000 manhours till now, the workshop may also lose its credibility if this kind of agitations continue. ``Certain operations in this workshop are not carried out anywhere else in the country. If disruptions continue, we might stop getting orders in the future,'' said another official.