Maharashtra Truckers Begin Indefinite Strike Over E-Challan, Demand Relief
Truckers in Maharashtra launched an indefinite strike over the e-challan system and hefty fines, disrupting transport. A review committee was formed, but demands for old challan cancellations persist.
Mumbai, Jul 2 (PTI) Truckers in Maharashtra went on an indefinite strike on Wednesday to protest against the e-challan system and press for other long-pending demands, disrupting goods transport services across the state, transporters' representative said.
The transporters have complained the recovery process by authorities has become aggressive and is disrupting business operations, besides mounting fines of e-challans.
The Vahatukdar Bachao Kruti Sanghatana, an action committee of transporters' associations, gave the strike call.
While the truckers began the strike from midnight, bus operators have deferred their participation for the next few days.
"The strike has received a mixed response as it is the first day, but the situation will be different post-afternoon," claimed Uday Barge, convener of the action committee.
He said 1.5 lakh and 2 lakh trucks and other goods-carrying vehicles in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra would go off roads due to the strike.
Barge claimed all trucks were off roads in Mumbai's business hub Kalbadevi, while in other areas, members of transport associations were using "Gandhigiri" to persuade transporters to join the strike.
The transporters' demands include stopping forceful recovery of e-challan fines, cancellation of e-challans older than six months, waiving existing penalties, scrapping the mandatory cleaner rule for heavy vehicles, and reconsidering no-entry timings in metro cities.
In view of the strike call, the state government has formed a 10-member committee comprising senior officers from the Mumbai traffic police, highway police and motor vehicles department, along with leaders of transport associations, to look into the issue.
The committee will submit its report within a month, according to a Government Resolution (GR) issued late Tuesday night.
Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik on June 26 assured the formation of the committee to look into the transporters' demands.
The transporters earlier staged an indefinite sit-in protest from June 16 at Mumbai's Azad Maidan to press for their demands.
They called off the protest on June 24 after Industries Minister Uday Samant assured them a meeting would be convened to resolve their issues.
During the meeting held the following day, Sarnaik and Samant promised the formation of a committee to examine the demands.
However, the transporters remained firm on their decision for the strike in July, citing lack of relief regarding the withdrawal of e-challans older than six months.
"As the Uttar Pradesh government has waived old fines issued through e-challans in their state, the Maharashtra government should also consider taking a similar move," Kailas Pingle, president of Maharashtra Rajya Motor Malak Sangh, which has also extended support to the strike, said on Tuesday.
However, a leader of one of the bodies of bus operators on Tuesday said Chief Minister Eknath Fadnavis requested the bus operators not to go on strike to avoid troubles for the warkaris (devotees of Lord Vitthal), as Ashadi Ekadashi is just a few days away.
Hence they decided to postpone their participation in the strike for a few days, he said.
(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)
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