School bus owners have threatened to go on an indefinite strike from April 10 to protest against stringent norms and steep hikes in taxations of motor vehicles introduced by the State and Central government.
Anil Garg, president of the School Bus Owners’ Association (SBOA), said, “Exams are going on in many schools and so if we go on strike then the exam schedule of schools may be affected. Hence, we have asked individual associations in the districts across the State like Pune and Nashik to decide and take their own call about the strike on Saturday.”
Decision on Saturday
The SBOA will meet with associate members at Nityanand Hall in Sion on Saturday evening to finalise their course of action.
The bus owners are protesting a 30% hike in motor insurance, rise in other motor taxes, steep increase in fines from ₹200 to over ₹2,000 and introduction of stringent terms of vehicle certifications including fitness certificates. Mr. Garg said the State was being unfair by not allowing vehicles below 13-seater capacity to ferry students below 12 years of age. He said taking into consideration the fluctuating fuel prices, they have decided to raise the bus fee if the fuel price exceeds a certain set limit.
