Transport strike leaves commuters in the lurch in Kolkata

The metropolis wore a deserted look today as private buses, minibuses and autorickshaw operators went on an indefinite strike after their meeting with the West Bengal government on a high court order banning 15-year-old vehicles in the city failed.

People were seen waiting for state-run buses to reach their destinations especially to the airport, Howrah and Sealdah railway stations.

Packed trains and underground metro have been running normally, officials said.

The government-run ferry service from Howrah station to the ghats on the bank of the Hooghly river was also operating normally.

Some auto-rickshaws were also seen plying on shorter routes. Cycle-rickshaw pullers were demanding extra money to ferry passengers.

While the taxis are likely to return on the roads tomorrow, bus and minibus operators have threatened to continue the strike "indefinitely" unless they were financially helped by the state government to phase out the old vehicles.

The Calcutta High Court order banning all 15-year-old commercial vehicles from the Kolkata metropolitan area would come into force from August one.