Faced with the threat of a strike by employees of the AP State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) in the Telangana region from Sunday midnight, the government has decided to issue special permits for operation of private vehicles.
An order issued under the Motor Vehicles Act a day ahead of the strike, authorised the secretaries of the regional transport authorities (RTAs) to issue permits for plying contract carriages to ensure uninterrupted transport service if the APSRTC withdrew its fleet in Telangana. The government expects the strike, being organised by Telangana Forum, an outfit of the National Mazdoor Union, to be total.
Nearly 10,000 out of the APSRTC's total bus fleet of 22,000 ply in the region now, providing 45 per cent of the 1.4 crore RTC's daily commuters in the State. With a view to pre-empting the strike, the government had brought the APSRTC services under the Essential Services Maintenance Act on July 7, banning any strike for a period of six months.
Meanwhile, the mining activity in the Singareni Collieries remained affected totally in Karimnagar, Adilabad, and Warangal districts with workers abstaining from work for the fifth day, while the attendance in six opencast and five underground mines in Khammam district improved to 60 per cent.
The coal production on Saturday had gone up to 40,000 tonnes.