Auto strike hits normal life

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, JULY 2. Passengers, mostly those who arrived in the city by outstation trains and buses, experienced extreme hardship as transporters, including autorickshaw drivers, went on an indefinite bandh from Monday pressing their demand of withdrawal of the "abnormal" compounding fee.

While the Twin Cities Transporters' Joint Action Committee, which called the bandh, claimed that it was total, an official of the Transport department asserted that there was impact only on account of absence of autorickshaws. He said only a section of the local lorry operators had joined the bandh.

Passengers who reached the Nampally Railway Station by the Mumbai Express had a tough time reaching their destination as the additional buses promised by the APSRTC to meet the situation arising out of the bandh were found to be insufficient. As a result cycle rickshaws made most of the situation.

Retailers with heavy baggages containing flowers, vegetables and other provisions, were put to much difficulty as the mini-trucks, mini-trollies and local lorries joined the bandh. They had to do with RTC buses.

In Shainayatganj a group of mini-trolley operators, who went round the local markets trying to take out a rally, were taken into preventive cusdody.

School students and their parents spent anxious moments as autos were not available to transport them to school and back. One parent said since information about the bandh was lacking he had to make alternate arrangements in a hurry.

Mr. C.L.N. Gandhi, Joint Transport Commissioner and Secretary, Road Transport Authority, said that there was not much impact of lorries going off the roads and that the long-distance transport was not disturbed. He said the auto strike was near-total, although some vehicles were operated. The RTC operated services to carry vegetables, milk and other provisions required for daily consumption by the people, according to Mr. Gandhi.

He described the bandh as `City-based strike' for a State-wide demand. He said the GO Ms. No. 69, imposing enhanced compounding fee, ranging from 100 per cent to 150 per cent, was being enforced in all the districts. Its provisions were being accepted elsewhere.

The Joint Transport Commissioner stated that the representatives of the Joint Action Committee had approached the department regarding their demands only on Sunday. He clarified that the department had an open mind on the demands.

Mr. Ch. Rameshwar Rao, Regional Manager, Hyderabad City Region of the APSRTC, said 100 additional buses were operated since 4 a.m. on different routes in the city and its outskirts for the benefit of the people. Senior officers, including himself, had supervised the deployment of these vehicles. He stated that the additional buses would be deployed, in consultation with the police, also if the bandh continued on Tuesday.

Mr. M.V. Dinakar Prasad, DCP, Traffic, said that he had spoken to the leaders of the Joint Action Committee over telephone. He said they had promised to discuss the issue with him but they failed to turn up.

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