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| Transporters hold life to ransom, Govt mum | | | Early Times Reporter
Jammu | June 10
On second day of passenger transporters' strike life seemed to have come to a grinding halt across Jammu and Kashmir even as the government failed to either break impasse with the striking transporters or to make alternate arrangements of transportation.
On the first day of strike, only routine passengers and tourists bore the brunt of non-availability of transport facility but today attendance in offices thinned down to negligible. Even in the private offices the employees and workers did not turn up thus derailing the routine system enormously.
Reports pouring in different parts of the state, including Kashmir Valley, suggested that life has come to a virtual standstill as public transport stayed off the roads for the second consecutive day as part of a four-day transporters' strike to protest the hike in fuel prices.
No buses, mini-buses, taxis and three-wheelers were seen on the roads and striking transporters burnt tyres in some areas of the city as also in other parts of the region.
T.S. Wazir, chairman of the All Jammu and Kashmir Transporters Welfare Association that has called the strike, said no commercial vehicle would ply anywhere in the state till the demands of the transporters were met.
The state government has, meanwhile, constituted a committee comprising the state transport minister, the finance commissioner and the commissioner of the general administration department to meet representatives of the transporters and sort out the matter.
Attendance in government offices, banks, schools, colleges and business establishments remained thin as commuters had took hours to get to their destinations.
Though the administration had mobilised fleets of the state-owned State Road Transport Corporation, their numbers proved inadequate to cope with the demands of commuters across the valley.
Meanwhile, the Transport department made loud claims of having made full alternate arrangements but nothing was visible on the ground. According to a press statement by State Road Transport Corporation 150 vehicles were operated between Jammu and Katra on Monday and 80 vehicles on Tuesday up to noon to facilitate pilgrims and general public facing inconvenience on account of strike by private transporters.
Around 10 vehicles were dispatched from Jammu to Srinagar for Mela Khirbhawani, 51 vehicles operated between Jammu to Srinagar for carrying tourists on June 09 and 10, 2008 and about 10 vehicles were operated on city routes in Jammu city.
Besides Interstate Division of J&K State Road Transport Corporation having a fleet of 100 vehicles functioned normally to cater the rush of passengers from different states visiting J&K State.
J&K State Road Transport Corporation is also plying its vehicles on district routes of the State viz Poonch, Rajouri, Doda, Bhaderwah, Mendhar, Kishtwar and Gandoh to meet the rush of passengers.
Moreover, JKSRTC is providing sufficient number of trucks to the Food and Supplies Department for meeting the demand of essential commodities to different districts of the State. |
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