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Petrol pump owners intensify struggle for uniform VAT rates for diesel

May 20, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

New Delhi, May 20 (ANI): The Delhi Petrol Dealers” Association staged a peaceful demonstration here on Thursday over its demand for uniformity in Value Added Tax (VAT) on diesel in Delhi and adjoining states.

Around 100 dealers took part in the protest and marched towards Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit”s residence with a bouquet of flowers.

“All these years, our VAT rates have always remained equal as of Haryana. So, we have only one demand that our VAT rates should remain equal now also. If in future, diesel rates in Haryana increase even to 30 rupees, we don”t mind the same rates,” said Jugal Batra, a former DPDA president.

The dealers placed the flowers outside Dikshit”s residence, while Batra went inside to discuss the problem.

After the meeting, Batra said Dikshit had assured him that she would look into the issue after consulting Finance Ministers of neighbouring states and representatives of the VAT committee.

“We will take some time to work it out,” he added.

On April 9, petrol station owners had called off their strike after Dikshit assured that their grievances would be addressed within 15 days.

Delhi has announced an increase in VAT on diesel from 12.5 percent to 20 percent. The sale of diesel has gone down by more than 40 percent, forcing both motorists and truck drivers to head for petrol pumps in Gurgaon, Faridabad and Noida because of the price difference.

It has been reported that the diesel has become cheaper by Rs 3.50-4 in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. The price of diesel in Haryana is Rs 34.22, whereas in New Delhi, it is Rs 38.10. (ANI)

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Security beefed up in Assam following ULFA threat

April 30, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Guwahati, Apr 30 (ANI): Police have beefed up preventive security measures in Guwahati following an intelligence alert over a possible strike by the rebel United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA).

“There are intelligence inputs that ULFA may try to do some subversive activities in Guwahati, so our police is taking care of,” said Himanta Biswa Sarma, Health Minister of Assam.

However, he dispelled panic over the warning as he said that the might of the rebel group has waned after the arrest of some top ULFA leaders, including its Chairman, Arabinda Rajkhowa.

“I think now police has developed its network very well and we are confident that ULFA is no longer such a force to be scared of any more,” Sharma added.

The ULFA is one among the two dozens of armed ultra factions operating in the northeastern region, either fighting for independent homeland, or more political autonomy.

They accuse New Delhi of plundering the region”s mineral and forest resources, neglecting local economy and giving them back nothing in return.

State Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has reiterated that the government is ready to hold dialogue with the ULFA leaders on all issues within the ambit of Indian Constitution.

He is reported to have said that he would not ”wait indefinitely” for the elusive ULFA commander-in-chief, Paresh Baruah, to come forth for the dialogue. (ANI)

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Gadkari terms reservation to Muslims under OBC as Congress’ vote-bank politics

April 1, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Kolkata, April 1 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party President Nitin Gadkari on Thursday criticised the Congress-led government at the Centre over giving reservations to the Muslim community under Other Backwards Class (OBC) category on religious bases as he views it nothing but “vote-bank politics”.

“It is so unfortunate that we are talking about reservation. The 10 percent reservation being given on the basis of religion is wrong. And the way the entire thing is being presented is just plain vote-bank politics being played. The party is only doing it to garner more votes in the next election. I am definite that this reservation will prove harmful for the country. This is a wrong policy being adopted,” said Gadkari.

The Justice Ranganath Misra Commission recognizes extreme Muslim backwardness, and has recommended a 10 percent quota exclusively for the community, in jobs and education.

Gadkari, however, said that this is just a strategy being adopted by the ruling Congress party to fulfill its political ambitions.

“Because of political ambition, the whole issue of who is more backward has arisen. Now everyone wants to prove, ”I am backward”. This is just vote-bank politics. In the 63 years since Independence, what has the Congress party done for the Muslims? They have just employed Muslims as tea vendors, junkyard-owner, truck drivers, cleaners and nothing else,” Gadkari added.

It may be recollected that Union Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Wednesday (March 31) said the Centre was committed to provide reservations for the backward sections of Muslims, after the Supreme Court upheld the validity of four percent reservation for the same in Andhra Pradesh.

But the minister also said that other means and tools for helping the backward communities needed to be sought as well. (ANI)

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Maoists burn four trucks in Jharkhand

March 30, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

Chatra (Jharkhand), Mar 30 (ANI): Suspected Maoists burnt four trucks at a coal mine field in Piparwar in Jharkhand”s Chatra District on Tuesday.

Around 25 armed cadres of the People”s Liberation Front of India (PLFI) stormed the coal-mining complex of Central Coal Field Limited in Piparwar and set afire four trucks.
“The cadres of PLFI came in two cars and set afire four vehicles,” said S N Yadav, assistant sub-inspector of police, Kheliare police station.

A scuffle between the PLFI cadres and truck drivers also followed but no one was seriously injured.

“Two people came from the front and another two climbed the vehicle from both the sides and aimed guns on us. They told us to stop the truck. We resisted but they did not listen. When we asked why are you burning the truck, they hit us,” said Satinder Ram, a truck driver.

A majority of Maoist rebels have ignored repeated calls from the government to renounce violence and negotiate.

Instead, they have stepped up their attacks in recent months, prompting the government to go after them in a concerted strike.

The Maoist rebels had on February 22 offered a conditional 72-day ceasefire through the media, and said they are willing to talk to the government if it aborts Operation Green Hunt. Many believe the truce offer is a ruse to regroup.

The Maoists contend they are fighting for the rights of the poor, marginal farmers and the landless labourers. (ANI)

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Taxi driver in court over toddler’s death

March 10, 2010 By vani Leave a Comment

A 23-year-old man has made a brief appearance in the Melbourne Magistrates Court charged over the death of three-year-old Gurshan Singh.

Taxi driver Gursewak Dhillon, a housemate of Gurshan Singh’s parents, is charged with manslaughter by criminal negligence.

Police allege he placed the unconscious boy in the boot of his car then drove around for three hours before dumping him near Melbourne Airport.

Dhillon made no application for bail and will return to court in June.

Meanwhile, the boy’s parents hope to find out today when they will be able to take their son’s body home to India.

Family friend and local councillor Tim Singh Laurence says the boy’s parents are coping as well as can be expected.

“They’re mainly focused, of course, on taking their child back to India to conduct ceremonies in accordance with Sikh faith in the Punjab, with their relatives,” he told ABC Radio’s Bruce Guthrie.

He said the Indian community in the northern suburbs is largely made up of truck drivers and taxi drivers.

Eleven people, including Dhillon, were living at the Lalor house at the time of the boy’s death.

Councillor Laurence said it is a very trusting community and it is normal for people to share their homes.

“So this is a blow because this person wasn’t known to them, sharing the house, and has breached their trust in such a terrible way.”

Police appeal

Meanwhile, police are seeking public help to find a woman who may have further information about the boy’s death.

They believe the woman may have stopped to help a motorist driving a dark green VT or VN Commodore somewhere in Melbourne’s northern suburbs between noon and 3:00pm last Thursday.

It is believed Dhillon was driving a vehicle in the northern suburbs before it ran out of fuel.

Police believe the woman may have assisted Dhillon by driving him to the service station.

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Militants’ levy keeps truckers away from Nagaland

July 3, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Kohima, July 3 (ANI): Illegal taxes demanded by militants’ have dissuaded truckers carrying essential commodities from entering Nagaland. As a result, the availability and rates of essential commodities have risen in the state.

As the rates demanded by the militants were exorbitant, the truckers loaded off their goods at Lahorijan or Bokajan on the Assam-Nagaland border, refusing to go beyond.

The truckers complain that militants are extorting large sums of money from them and also beating them up.

“The problem is that we go with our vehicles, they trouble us, they also beat us up and ask for money. Where will we pay them from?, “said Laxman, a truck driver.

The authorities have now decided to provide escort to all vehicles, security and safety to the truckers during loading and unloading of goods besides looking into the cases of extortion and abduction of truck drivers.

Nagaland Home Minister Imkong L. Imchen said that they are conducting flush out operations and thus they have controlled extortion to a reasonable extent, but admitted that it continued.

Imchen confirmed the presence of ten insurgent groups from outside the state, operating in or around the commercial hub of Dimapur.

“We are conducting search and flush out operations. With that exercise, we have arrested the criminals of this situation to a reasonable extent, but I too admit that this extortion, the spectre of this extortion, is still very high,” he said.

The state authorities have ordered a ban on collection of any kind of taxes or donations from the trucks and commercial vehicles.

Though there are still some truckers moving into the state, but most of them want their security to be assured before moving into the state again. By Vibhou Ganguly (ANI)

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LIC employees take to streets against Assam police

May 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Jorhat (Assam), May 19 (ANI): Hundreds of employees of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and their sympathisers took out huge protest march through the streets oforhat in Assam on Monday.

They were staging a protest against the Assam police who were accused of being high hard on employees of LIC.

Reportedly, the trouble began on May 13 when an employee of LIC met with an accident and died on the spot.

Soon, an irate mob converged at the site of accident and set ablaze the truck that had claimed the life of the LIC staff.

The wrath of the public was also directed against the police on the contention that in the absence of proper traffic monitoring and control, there was reckless driving by truck drivers on most of the busy roads, leading to frequent accidents.

After this incident, certain police personnel stormed the LIC office and baton charged the employees including women.

About 25 employees were seriously injured including loss of eyesight due to police brutality.

Consequently, employees from all the divisions of LIC staged demonstration demanding appropriate action against the police authorities.

“We want action to be taken against the policemen who baton charged LIC workers and that’s why we have taken out this protest march. And we demand the matter too be treated seriously,” said Probita Chandra Dutta, LIC employee.

Thousands of government as well private companies’ employees from Assam, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh also joined the protest march.

They lamented that the employee were treated very badly.

“Everything was damaged by police. There treated the LIC workers as terrorist persons,” said Pramod Mahanta, a protestor.

About 4000 workers are employed by LIC in various states of the North East and it has around 11divisional offices. (ANI)

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Taliban loot seven trucks of bomb-making chemical fertilizers in Swat

April 26, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Islamabad, Apr.16 (ANI): Heavily armed Taliban gunmen have looted at least seven trucks of chemical fertilizer used in making bombs in the Swat Valley, a report by the BBC claims.

According to the security officials, Taliban looted the vehicles loaded with ‘ammonium nitrate’ in Chahar Bagh and Guli Bagh areas of the Valley.

Security officials said the extremists use the chemical for making bombs.

One of the truck drivers, Muhammad Javed, whose truck was also looted, said that the Taliban gunmen, while taking the truck under their captivity said that they belonged to the government so they were ‘authorised’ to do so.

Javed said that after unloading the trucks, which contained over 400 bags of ammonium nitrate each, the gunmen allowed all the drivers to flee. (ANI)

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Pakistan militants torch Afghan supplies

April 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) – Taliban militants set fire on Sunday to 10 container trucks carrying supplies to Western forces in Afghanistan in a pre-dawn attack near the Pakistani city of Peshawar, police said.

Islamist militants stepped up attacks on supplies trucked through Pakistan into land-locked Afghanistan last year, exposing the vulnerability of a vital transport link for U.S. and other foreign troops battling the Taliban.

The attacks have also highlighted the Pakistani government’s loss of control to the Taliban of a growing part of the northwest.

The attackers on Sunday drove unopposed to two transport depots on the outskirts of Peshawar, capital of North West Frontier Province, near the Afghan border.

“They first disarmed the terminal guards and then threw petrol bombs,” said police officer Waris Khan.

As the militants were withdrawing, police turned up and there was a brief exchange of fire in which two truck drivers were wounded, he said.

Khan said the trucks were taking cement to Afghanistan.

The route from Peshawar up to the Afghan border through the Khyber Pass is the most important of two routes through Pakistan.

Because of the increase in militant attacks, the United States has been trying to find new supply routes.

The United States said in March it expected soon to finalize an agreement with Tajikistan that would allow the transit of non-lethal supplies to Afghanistan.

(Reporting Faris Ali; Writing by Kamran Haider; Editing by Robert Birsel)

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Global economic slump hits Gujarat transporters

April 5, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Saurashtra (Gujarat), Apr 4 (ANI): The truck industry of Saurashtra in Gujarat has bulk of its long fleet lying idle.

A conservative estimate says that there were more than one lakh of trucks always running to meet the demand. However, the recession has completely changed the scenario for last two to three months.
Almost 3,00,000 people dependent on the transport industry for their livelihood are without any succour. The truck drivers are not getting their salaries.
“Almost 80 per cent of the industry has been hit because of this global slump. Those industries that demanded for ten trucks are now managing with only two of them whereas the rest keep on lying there. Another problem is when the trucks reach their destination; there also they have to wait for days to get the goods loaded. Because of this, the expenditure keeps on increasing and it gets difficult for the financer of the trucks to pay the bank installments,” said P.K Jadeja, a truck driver.
The truck association of Rajkot has lost all hopes for a revival.
“Here in Rajkot, 10,000 trucks are loaded in a month. Among them, only 40,000 get loaded whereas the rest remains unloaded. When these trucks reach Surat, they keep on standing there for two days for goods and when they finally get loaded and come back in Rajkot again they have to wait here for the goods. The market condition is very bad at the moment,” said Dashrath Singh Gohil, Vice President, Rajkot Goods Truck Association.
Besides decreased demand of trucks, a hike in prices of diesel and increase in toll taxes compounded their woes. By Suresh Soni (ANI)

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