Deadlock over Plying of Illegal Vehicles on Highways
Passengers suffer as buses go off roads in 6 districts
Buses did not move out of Sonadanga central bus terminal in Khulna as transport owners and workers in six southern districts including Khulna went on an indefinite strike yesterday.Photo: STAR
Bus owners and workers enforced an indefinite strike in six southern districts yesterday, demanding ban on plying of shallow engine-driven vehicles on highways. Vehicular movements remained off on the 30 routes in Khulna, Bagerhat Barisal, Jhalakathi, Pirojpur and Satkhira districts, causing untold suffering to commuters. Khulna District Bus-Minibus Owners' Association, Rupsha-Bagerhat Bus-Minibus Owners' Association, Khulna Motor Workers' Union and Bagerhat Transport Workers' Union enforced the strike from 6:00am. During the strike, transport workers brought out processions in the districts while a large number of commuters were seen returning home from the bus terminals, sources said. Masum Mollah, vice-president of Bagerhat motor workers' union, said the number of bus passengersa started decreasing gradually as the commuters preferred to go by three wheelers like Nasimon, Karimon, bhotbhuti, easybike and battery-run vehicles due to low fares. Anisur Rahman Paklu, general secretary of the Khulna District Bus-Minibus Owners' Association, said they have called the strike as the local administration failed to stop plying of human haulers, popularly known as Nasimon, Karimon and other illegal battery-run vehicles on the highways. Bagerhat Bus Minibus Owners' Association general secretary Khan Monir Hossain said they gave a 20-day ultimatum to the government on June 5 to take steps to stop plying of shallow engine-driven vehicles on highways. As no action was taken by the deadline, the bus owners' and motor workers' unions of the affected districts took the decision at a meeting in Bagerhat to enforce the indefinite strike from July 1. According to Mrinmoy Kumar Das, office secretary of Bagerhat Inter-district Road Transport Owners' Association, the owners' associations participating in the strike are: Khulna District Bus-Minibus Owners' Association, Rupsha-Bagerhat Bus-Minibus Owners' Association, Bagerhat Inter-district Road Transport Owners' Association, Mahishpura-Khulna Inter-district Bus Owners' Association, Shoronkhola Bus Owners' Association and Pirojpur District Bus Owners' Association.
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