The indefinite strike by truck operators in the State entered the fifth day on Tuesday.
With the government showing no sign of conceding the demands, members of the Andhra Pradesh Lorry Owners’ Association (APLOA) have decided to hold talks with the leaders of the national body, All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), which is leading the nation-wide agitation, on Wednesday to intensify the strike.
About 3 lakh lorries have gone off the road in Andhra Pradesh causing disruption to inter-district supply of pulses, millets, rice and other commodities.
“Supply of emergency services like milk and vegetables could also stop as part of intensification of the strike from Wednesday. We do not want to cause any inconvenience to people but the government has been ignoring our fair demands for way too long, leaving us with no other option but to resort to the path of confrontation,” said Y.V. Eswara Rao, general secretary, APLOA.
He said the transport sector was reeling under the impact of demonetisation, rise in input costs along with fuel prices and the high cost of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Demands
“We want a rollback in diesel price, a toll-free country for a seamless movement of goods and reduction in third party insurance premium,” said Mr. Rao.
The truck operators are also demanding national permits for all buses and trucks and cancellation of indirect taxes. The lorry owners are said to be incurring a loss of ₹35-40 crore per day because of not operating their vehicles while the revenue loss incurred by the government is pegged at ₹25 crore per day.
