Trucks from Tamil Nadu will not be operated in Karnataka from the midnight of May 31 to protest the Karnataka government's notification making it compulsory for vehicles from other States to have speed governors from June 1, president of the State Lorry Owner Federation – Tamil Nadu (SLOFTN) K. Nallathambi told The Hindu here on Wednesday.
Last year, Karnataka made it mandatory for vehicles in Karnataka and those from other States to install speed governors.
The order was temporarily withdrawn for vehicles from other States when the federation here announced a strike.
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According to Mr. Nallathambi, the speed limit for buses and trucks had been fixed at 60 km and 40 km per hour. More than 60 per cent of the accidents took place between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. when the drivers tend to fall asleep at the wheel. This showed that speed alone did not cause accidents.
“The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation bus, which met with an accident near Puduchatram (Namakkal) in March had a speed governor. The accident took place despite this and five passengers were killed and many injured,” he pointed out. A few days later, another bus from Karnataka was involved in an accident near Komarapalayam in the district in which two persons were killed.
Every day, more than 40,000 trucks from Tamil Nadu entered Karnataka to reach different parts of that State and also pass through to Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, New Delhi, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir and return to Tamil Nadu.
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Letter sent to Jayalalithaa
Mr. Nallathambi said that a letter had been sent to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister urging her to urge the Karnataka government to cancel the notification. LPG bullet tanker operators also supported the demand for the withdrawal of the notification.