The strike is indefinite and the transport union has made a number of demands
Freight rates were not available as truck transporters' strike continued for the second day today.
The truckers' key demands include reduction in central and state taxes by getting diesel under the GST and reforming the "flawed and non-transparent" toll collection system.
As strike entered the second day on Saturday, the day-to-day routine of residents has come to standstill.
"We are facing a lot of problems. It is tough to send children to school on time. It's also raining so streets and stations are waterlogged. We don't even get a taxi," a Mumbai resident said.
The All-India Motor Transport Congress had announced a nation-wide strike on July 20 asking redressal of issues such as the e-Way bill, which has “crippled the transport operations”.
The move comes after the Madhya Pradesh High Court upheld a fine of Rs 1.32 crore imposed on a company for errors in the e-Way bill. The state tax department had imposed the fine, under Section 122 of SGST Act as the company failed to furnish full information in part B of the e-Way bill.
According to a Financial Express report, the company, Gati Kintetsu Express Pvt Ltd, challenged the penalty in MP High Court, stating that it failed to fully comply with the e-Way bill requirement “due to some technical glitch on e-waybill NIC portal”. However, the MP High Court dismissed the petition saying that the company’s explanation of technical error had no merit as it did not raise its grievance on the GST portal.
The e-Way bill was rolled out for inter-state movement of goods from April 1. It is being rolled-out in phases for intra-state movement of goods. The e-Way is required for goods with consignment value of Rs 50,000 or more. The bill contains two parts, in which part B is mandatory for goods being transported for more than 50 km.
1. School bus missing
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Parents come to pick their children up from a school in Mumbai - Hemant Padalkar/ DNA Photo
2. School buses stayed parked
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While the school buses union announced that they understood the inconvenience they would cause, it did not deter them from staying off roads on Friday and Saturday - Hemant Padalkar/ DNA Photo
3. Parents arrive at school
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A crowd of people arrive at a Mumbai school to pick up their children after school buses refused to ply on the roads- Hemant Padalkar/ DNA Photo
4. Taxis benefit
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The biggest gainers were taxi services in Mumbai, as this one that is crowded with children demonstrates - Hemant Padalkar/ DNA Photo
5. Trucks stay still
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An indefinite strike the declared by All-India Motor Transport Congress started on July 20 and received support from various truck associations across the country in a bid to reduce prices for fuel, tolls and taxes amongst other demands - AFP
6. Parked in Bengaluru
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Transport trucks are parked in Bangalore during the second day of a nationwide truck strike on July 21 - AFP
7. Buses off roads
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Buses parked along a road following a strike called by the All India Motor Transport Congress in association with Assam Motor Transport in support of their demands, in Guwahati on Saturday - PTI
