Private transport unions call for B'luru Bandh on Sep 11

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The private transport unions in the city have called for a bandh on September 11, announcing that autorickshaws, taxis, airport taxis, maxi cabs, school vans, factory vehicles, and other stage carriages will stay off the roads on that day.

According to sources, members of 32 transport unions will block major roads connecting to Mysuru, Electronics City, KR Puram, and Nelamangala roads to further press for the fulfillment of their demands.

The autorickshaw and taxi unions claim to have been adversely affected by the Shakti-free travel scheme for women.

They are demanding a monthly aid of Rs 10,000 each for drivers, along with a ban on Rapido bike taxis.

Their list of demands also includes the establishment of a corporation for the benefit of unorganized commercial drivers and transport development, loans at low-interest rates for drivers, prevention of private registered vehicles from ferrying passengers, scholarships for children of drivers, a ban on appbased aggregators like Ola and Uber, inclusion of private buses under the Shakti scheme, and action against finance companies that seize vehicles without authorization, among others.

TRUCKERS CALL OFF PROTEST

In the meantime, the Federation of Karnataka State Lorry Owners And Agents Association, which had staged a protest in front of the Shantinagar Regional Transport Office (RTO) against the imposition of a lifetime tax, has withdrawn its agitation.

The association members had organised a protest on Thursday by parking over 250 trucks on KH Double Road against the imposition of a lifetime tax for commercial vehicles after the August 31 deadline had passed.

The protest was called off after a meeting with Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy, who assured the association members that he would discuss the issue.

He stated that the existing system of paying quarterly road tax would continue until the end of the year and requested them to settle the pending taxes within one or two days.