Truckers strike
For the government to look into their demands, truckers went on a nation wide strike in July 2018.
For the government to look into their demands, truckers went on a nation wide strike in July 2018.
This is not the first time that the nation’s truckers have gone on a strike. The last instance was in October 2017 to think of the recent past. The All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) called a two-day token strike then, demanding that diesel be brought under the ambit of GST for uniformity of prices across the country and fuel prices be revised every quarter rather than every day. The AIMTC also called upon the government to look at the operation of tolls and check posts. So, when trucks began piling up at various transport nagars across the country on the night of July 19, 2018, it became clear that the indefinite strike called by the AIMTC had started. Beginning on July 20 and ending on July 28, the strike lasted a good eight days. An estimated 93 lakh truckers across India participated in the strike. Daily transport operations were affected. Only trucks that operated were those that transported essential commodities like vegetables, medicines, milk, etc. Claimed to have caused a nationwide loss to the tune of
Rs.10,000 crores in just three days of the strike, the strike put the spotlight on the long standing demands of the truckers.
Apart from fuel prices and toll costs (tolls have begun to account for big spends after fuel for truckers), the others demands of truckers like the spiralling insurance premiums and harrasment on the road by the authorities also came under the radar. The eight-day long strike got the government to engage and consider the demands of the truckers. Several rounds of discussions took place between the government officials and AIMTC representatives. The government is said to have assured the truckers that they will look into the demands placed by them. Upon government’s request, the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDA) is claimed to have agreed to discuss the demands put forth by the trucking body to review the third-party insurance premium for heavy vehicles. The nodal agency for the insurance sector is said to have engaged with transporters for the first time ever. Regarding toll, the government, according to AIMTC sources, has agreed to put in place a mechanism that will ensure seamless movement of transport vehicles across toll plazas within six months. A committee of road transport and highways ministry will explore the scope for improvement including the suggestions given by the trucker, mentioned AIMTC sources.
Apart from the notification of a national permit scheme for tourist vehicles (should profit buses and passenger vans especially) to facilitate seamless movement across the country, the government was quick to announce that it will extend the validity of vehicle fitness certificate to every two years rather than the current rule of one year. It was also quick to announce new axle norms whose implementation is scheduled for October. Said to have agreed to remove double-driver requirement, to strictly enforce anti-overloading norms and to bring uniformity in height for all transport vehicles, the eight-day strike, expressed a transporter on the condition of not revealing his name, has induced a lot of damage on them. The good development however, he said, was that the government had to take
serious note of the transporters demands. Driving past disruptions like demonetisation, which brought transporters down to their knees for almost a week after it was announced, implementation of GST and e-way bill, the transport industry in India has been witnessing its business operations undergo a drastic change and the pain points shift.
As an aftermath of the eightday strike, a high level committee is expected to be constituted under the chairmanship of the secretary of the transport and highways ministry to facilitate expeditious resolution of demands of the transport fraternity. The committee will look into the demands ‘sympathetically’, and on issues related to e-way bill implementation, issues related to GST, rationalisation and or abolition of TDS rates, rationalisation of rates for presumptive tax on transport vehicles, Direct Port Delivery (DPD) at ports, and on any other issues that may arise in the first meeting of the committee according to a joint statement released by the ministry of road transport and highways and AIMTC. In the case of the e-way bill, it has been agreed, claimed an industry source, that there should be a distinction in the treatment of occasional clerical errors and evasion. In the case of the former, a nominal fee could be levied. Expected to examine issues like these, the committee would subsequently make suggestions to the GST Council for an SOP for a uniform hassle-free implementation. In the case of DPD, any restrictive provisions in the present policy will be reviewed, and the committee shall recommend amendments to ensure a fair and equitable participation.
Under the impression that the government and various other bodies as well as organisations are involved, the transport industry has gone back to work. It has begun doing what it does best, and albiet with an aftertaste of the strike that has left them to make good the business that their clients have lost. They also have the challenge of making good the losses they incurred by grounding their trucks for a good eight days. Unlike many other sectors or segments, the transport segment has always been the least glamourous. Even considered opaque to an extent, it is only after talking to transporters does it transpire that this is actually not the case. Battling issues like low-wages, long periods away from home, sleep deprivation, odd working hours, road infrastructure that is not the best, risk of assault or harrasment, poor stay facilities, etc., at a macro level, the transport industry for certain deserves better treatment. It needs to be respected the way other industry segments are respected. This could be done by looking at their issues and helping them to resolve it. The strike, it is clear, can’t be the answer.