Lorry owners strike enters sixth day: Supply of essential commodities hits
Bengaluru, July 25: The lorry owners strike being conducted across the country demanding toll-free movement, cutting of diesel price and other demands entered 6th day on Wednesday, affecting supply of essential commodities. As the goods careers stayed off the roads, the capital city is also experiencing the heat.
The supply of industrial raw materials hit the industry due to which small and medium industries have been suffering. On Wednesday, the number of goods vehicles coming from other states has come down. Normally, Bengaluru APMC usually receives 100 loads of potato and 200 loads of onion from Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra and other states. Because of the strike, more than 100 loads of onion and potato lorries have not reached the city.
The intensity of the strike is gradually increasing. If the situation continues for another two days, the supply of essential commodities will affect considerably. Already, the prices of potato, onion, rice, pulses, and other things are skyrocketing and this has forced the people to stay away from the market, said Yeshwanthpur APMC Yard Merchants Association president BL Shankarappa.
Potato supply had come down for the last two days due to which, the prices have gone up. Before the strike, 50 kg potato cost Rs 750 to Rs 950. Now, Rs 50 was increased for the same quantity. Even they have not received potato from Hassan, he said.
APMC yard closed, protest
Lorry owners closed the Yeshwanthpur APMC Yard and staged a protest against the central government alleging that it has neglected the lorry owners demands in spite of conducting the strike for the last five days. So, they would not withdraw their strike till their demands were met, they said.
Federation of Karnataka Lorry Owners and Agents Association state president GR Shanmugappa said that they have been protesting for the last five days without affecting the normal life of the people. But the government has not come forward to fulfill their demands. So, they have decided to intensify their strike. As part of this decision, they would block roads, he added.
Lakhs of lorries were off the roads due to strike. Every day, the lorry owners were incurring a loss of Rs 1,000 Cr and the central government was incurring a loss of Rs 1 lakh crore and the state government was incurring the loss of Rs 7,000 crore revenue, he said.
No problem due to strike
KR Market Merchants and Consumers Association president RV Gopi said that there was no problem due to lorry strike so far. The greens and vegetables, fruits and flowers were being supplied in mini vehicles. Mini vehicles have been transporting the vegetables, fruits and flowers from Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. The problem could be aggravated if the vehicular movement was completely stopped, he said.
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Kerala-born entrepreneur linked to Lebanon pager blasts, Bulgarian agency clears him of involvement
Wayanad: Rinson Jose, a Kerala-born entrepreneur and Norwegian citizen, has been linked to the investigation into the recent pager explosions in Lebanon that resulted in at least 20 fatalities and thousands of injuries.
Jose, 37, is the owner of Bulgaria-based Norta Global Limited and is suspected of being involved in the supply chain for the pagers used in the attacks on September 17, 2024.
“Although on paper it was BAC Consulting that signed the contract with Gold Apollo, Norta Global was actually the one behind the deal,” Telex, a Hungarian media outlet quoted sources as saying.
Reports suggest that Jose has gone missing since the attacks.
However, an investigation by Bulgaria's security agency, SANS, has cleared Jose and his company of any direct involvement, stating that no shipments related to the pagers passed through Bulgaria.
“Following verifications, it has been indisputably established that no communication equipment corresponding to those that exploded on September 17 was imported, exported or manufactured in Bulgaria,” the agency was quoted as saying by AFP. It added that the company and its owner had not carried out any transactions linked to the sale or purchase of the merchandise or that “falls under laws on terrorism financing".
