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Truckers take on govt, go off the roads

Long queues of trucks lazed near dhabas [roadside eateries] and petrol bunks as truck operators across the country went off the roads "indefinitely" from 0600 IST in a bid to force the government to roll back the diesel price hike.

Reports from 14 states, Chandigarh and Pondicherry were received in New Delhi, but only Bihar and Gujarat spoke of a poor response to the strike.

Various transport associations extended support to the strike called by the All-India Motor Transport Congress in Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and other states.

The Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training said the strike call evoked "modest response", but added that any assessment of its impact would be possible only tomorrow. Milk, water and newspapers have been exempted from the strike.

Prices of vegetables have already shot up in Tamil Nadu. Kerala, which is heavily dependent on other states for essential items, is expected to suffer badly as the strike was "near total" there.

The Delhi Exporters' Association said in a press statement that the strike would hit exports as shipments from upcountry areas to ports get held up. About 5,000 trucks are used daily to carry exporters' goods, it said, and demanded the help of army trucks.

The strike is also expected to affect the movement of raw materials to small-scale industrial units.

In Orissa, where private bus operators are also on strike since October 14, the government invoked the National Security Act today against the truckers. More than 35,000 trucks in the state joined the strike, affecting the movement of essential items.

Orissa Transport Secretary J Singh said the strike's impact would be felt only after two days. The civil supplies department is stocking essential commodities, he added.

Contingency plans have been prepared in other states also. In Gujarat, the government has invoked the Essential Services Maintenance Act, though the strike call has not had any major impact as yet. State Transport Secretary J S Rana said the local association of transporters is not actively supporting the strike.

In Tamil Nadu, where 150,000 trucks joined the strike, vegetable vendors were allowed the use of state transport corporation buses to transport their goods. Tankers and vans are being operated with police escort, Transport Secretary K Ponmudi said.

The railways' Madurai division ran special trains to facilitate the movement of essentials to the southern part of the state and Kerala.

In Karnataka, movement of goods was affected, but Chief Minister S M Krishna said ESMA would not be invoked immediately.

In Andhra Pradesh, the strike was described as 'total' in some districts and partial in others. Trucks were seen parked near petrol bunks and eating joints on national highways. The state government is keeping ready all the 18,000 freight carriages and the entire fleet of 30,000 tractor-trailers owned by the state road transport corporation.

In the capital, 50,000 truckers went off the roads, but movement of goods from neighbouring states continued. Hundreds of policemen were deployed at Delhi's borders to ensure against disruption of traffic by the strikers.

In the east, the Bihar Truck Association did not join the strike, but a report from Barauni said trucks and tankers were lined up along National Highway 31 in the town, the nodal point connecting north India with the north-eastern states and Bhutan.

Like Kerala, the north-eastern states are critically dependent on supplies from other states and prices could shoot up unless swift measures are taken to limit the damage. A section of passenger buses stopped plying along with the truckers in Assam today.

In Uttar Pradesh, officials said the strike was partial, but the state truck operators' federation claimed that it was a total success. While most truck operators in the state joined the protest, mini-trucks were plying and traffic on the Grand Truck Road was 'normal'.

In Himachal Pradesh, Home Secretary Ajay Prasad said that except for Mandi, Bilaspur and Solan districts, trucks were plying normally in other areas. But no truck from Haryana entered the state today. District authorities in the state have been asked to keep a watch on the availability of essential items.

The strike adversely affected the movement of essential items in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh. In Chandigarh, prices of vegetables and fruits shot up by 20 per cent as no trucks bearing these commodities entered the Union territory since morning. A Jalandhar report said no truck came from the Jammu side to the city since morning. Truck operators in Punjab were yet to formally join the strike.

UNI

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