Truck owners threaten to stage stir from Dec 15

BHUBANESWAR: Protesting introduction of Green Tax by the State Government and alleged exploitation by enforcement staff of Transport Department, the Odisha State Truck Owners’ Federation has decided to go on a strike from December 15.

The federation said, the Government’s decision to impose the Green Tax was taken without consultation. Apart from the `4,000 as the next levy, the hike in tax on trailers will burden the operators and render them unviable.

Seeking Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s intervention into the matter, the federation alleged that although inter-state check gates have been done away with, junior MVIs and other field staff of Transport Department are fleecing the truck operators by way of illegal checking and inspection.Satpathy demanded that the Government must introduce check-slips for each trip so that truckers face no such harassment. If the demands are not met, the operators will go off the roads from December 15, the federation said.