Bhubaneswar:The ‘quit steering’ protest by drivers of various commercial vehicles including bus and trucks affected normal life and likely to create an artificial scarcity of essential goods in the State.
Thousands of drivers under the banner ‘Odisha Drivers Mahasangh’ launched an indefinite protest across the State on Saturday, which affected transportation of normal bus passengers and essential goods including fuel, petrol and diesel.
The drivers are protesting against the new law stipulates a 10-year imprisonment and a Rs 7 lakh fine for hit-and-run offenders.
The Odisha State Co-operative Milk Producers’ Federation Limited (OMFED) service has also been affected by the protest as they are unable to transport milk to the market due to the drivers’ protest.
Around 70,000 litres of milk were unable to make it out of the dairy plant to districts of Cuttack, Puri, Bhubaneswar and Keonjhar, sources said.
The impact of the agitation was felt in Cuttack Netaji bus terminal, Balasore, Sambalpur, Dhenkanal, Jajpur, Koraput, Berhampur and several other parts. Maximum bus remained off road today. As a result, the passengers are facing problems. The daily commuters in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack faced hardship to reach their office and other destinations as maximum auto drivers also joined the protest
However, the State Government runs Mo Bus public transport service and there is a huge rush of passengers in the buses.
“As the consumers resorted to panic buying, 20 percent more petrol & diesel was sold in the State yesterday. Due to the protest, loading of the essential fuels decreased by 75 percent yesterday while the oil loading in trucks from Paradip depot is completely stopped today,” said Sanjay Lath, General Secretary, Utkal Petroleum Dealers’ Association.
Oil loading is done at just a few depots of Jatni in Khurda district and Balasore. If this situation continues, the petrol and diesel available in many petrol tanks will run out by tomorrow afternoon, he asserted.
“We are raising our voice against the newly formed rule by the central and state government. We will peacefully stage a protest until our demands are fulfilled,” association President Prashant Menduli said.
“Even the Odisha government has been cheating us over our demand for driver-insurance. We had made 10 demands during the strike last year. The State Government assured us to fulfil one demand. That too has not been implemented till now,” he said.
The State Government has not taken any steps regarding the promise it made to provide insurance and compensation to drivers in case of death or injuries following an accident which is another reason for the driver to go on strike, he added.
The Transport Commissioner Amitabh Thakur held a meeting with the protesting drivers today.
Speaking to reporters, Mr Thakur said, “The meeting was successful. Their demands have been fulfilled. The Government has launched a special portal for the welfare of the drivers. Ex-gratia to three deceased drivers, as per their demand, will be done on Monday. The drivers have agreed to call off their protest and join duty in the next two to three hours.”