Transporters' strike called off

The nationwide road transporters strike that was to take off from Sunday got called off after the associations held discussions with the government. HT reports

The nationwide road transporters strike that was to take off from Sunday got called off after the associations held discussions with the government.

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Beginning Saturday midnight all road transporters in Mumbai, Thane and Vashi were going on a voluntary strike to oppose the toll policy of the government.

This would have had an adverse impact on the industrial activities, productions and crippled movement of goods from the port area.

"We have decided to withdraw the strike as most of our demands have been met. The basic issue that the Act needs to be modified to bring in more transparency has been agreed on," said Sunil Kale, honorary general secretary of the Bombay Goods Transport Association.

The government has agreed to slash the toll tax by nearly 30% for commercial vehicles. The tax has been cut drastically from 3.40 per km to Rs 2.40 per km.

"Their demands were pending for years... discussions were done in the past three to four days, which concluded on Saturday," Road Minister Kamal Nath told reporters after negotiations with the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC).

"We had been demanding it for four years... now it has been accepted," said AIMTC president G R Shanmugappa.

On demands to reduce the toll barriers wherein the districts had to pay full (toll), the minister said: "Now, it would be 50% within the districts for the vehicles registered in the districts."

The AIMTC had demanded that full toll should not be levied after the concession period was over. "We have reduced it by 60%... now it would be 40%," Nath added.

(With agency inputs)