Truckers call off strike after assurance from Karnataka govt
Bengaluru, Apr 17 (PTI): Truckers associated with the Federation of Karnataka State Lorry Owners and Agents Associations (FOKSLOAA) on Thursday called off their strike after state Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy agreed to most of their demands.
The FOKSLOAA, with 129 truckers’ associations and six lakh members, commenced their protest on Monday night with a host of demands, including a reduction in diesel prices and toll-related problems faced by the truckers.
Transport Minister Reddy confirmed that the strike has been called off.
"I have told them that I would look into most of their demands, including the one related to check posts at the border areas," Reddy told PTI.
He said he has assured the FOKSLOAA delegation that a committee would be formed which will decide within three to four months about the role and responsibility of the check posts.
About the no-entry inside the Bengaluru city, the minister said he will speak to the Bengaluru Police Commissioner.
"I have told the truck drivers to complete their work between 7 AM and 8 AM," Reddy said.
He said he also agreed for the online fine payment for the truckers.
The minister said he has also assured them to set up more centres to renew their driving licence.
"Their demand for diesel price reduction and abolition of toll plaza was unrelated to us. I told them to first speak to the Centre before coming to us," Reddy said.
FOKSLOAA general secretary Somasundaram Balan said the strike has been called off. Except for diesel price reduction and toll related issues, all the demands have been fulfilled, he added.
According to Balan, the minister assured them that tariff charges of trucks will be given to the truckers within a month. A committee would be formed which will fix the rates.
Regarding the toll charges, the FOKSLOAA general secretary said the minister assured the delegation that it will be borne by the consigner or consignee and not the truckers.
FOKSLOAA president G R Shanmugappa told reporters after meeting with the minister that his federation had put forth five issues before the Karnataka government, which were genuine.
"We have raised the issue of border check posts of the Road Transport Office (RTO). These check posts have been removed in most of the states. So why is it still operating in Karnataka? Why is money collected there and why is RTO creating problem there? The minister assured us that within three months the state would take a call on scrapping them after studying the abolition of check posts in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh," Shanmugappa said.
Regarding the diesel price, Shanmugappa said there were fixed transportation charges for the autorickshaws, hail riding taxis and buses, but no such mechanism existed for trucks for the past 25 years. "The minister has said within a month the rent will be fixed, which is a matter of joy for us," he added.
The representatives of the truckers’ body had twice held discussions with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Reddy on Tuesday, which remained inconclusive.
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
