'Strike to continue till demands are met'

Truckers in Madhya Pradesh today said they will continue their strike till their demands were met as the state government invoked Essential Services Maintenance Act against the agitating transporters.

Truckers in Madhya Pradesh today said they will continue their strike, which entered the sixth day, till their demands were met as the state government invoked Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) against the agitating transporters.

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"We will continue our strike till the Centre accepts our eight demands, including a cut in levies and diesel price," Madhya Pradesh State Truckers Association (MPSTA) President Ajay Sharma told PTI here.

The government last night invoked ESMA to deal with the situation arising out of the strike. "The State Government has enforced ESMA for a period of three months from January 9," Transport Commissioner N K Tripathi said.

Meanwhile, the association criticised the Centre for arresting in Delhi some of the leaders of the union that is spearheading the strike. Such acts will not compel us to call off the stir, it said.