Transporters threaten to observe wheel-jam strike

Local transporters have warned the provincial government to observe 'wheel-jam' strike against the ban on renewal of route permits to old-model vehicles and against charging of heavy fines by traffic police. Addressing at a news conference at press club here on Monday, Flying Coach Adda Owner Association Khyber Pakhtunkhwa president Farhad Khan Ghazi said the provincial government had imposed ban on renewal of route permit to old-model vehicles since last five years.
He said the policy was tantamount to economic genocide of the poor transporters community.
He alleged that traffic police for collection of Rs 5,000 as fine, due to expiry of route permits of vehicles.
He further added that about 35 per cent fines went to provincial exchequer, while rest of 65 percent goes in pockets of traffic police wardens.
He said transporters community is being faced immense difficulties under the prevailing circumstances. He informed that the renewal of route permits was pending of approximately 400,000 to 500,000 across the province.
Farhad said that the traffic police didn't abide with directives of the provincial transport department, and continued to charge transporters with heavy fines.
He said that PTI led provincial government was deviating from its promises and pro-poor policies, made with masses, before the last general elections.
Flanked by the association Senior vice president, Haji Ghulam Rasool, Vice president Haji Dadsher Khan, General Secretary Haji Rahmat Khan, Deputy General Secretary, Haji Muneer Khan Bangash, and others, he said the provincial government is planning to end all kind of public transports, plying on local routes in Peshawar.
He expressed fear that the policy would create mass unemployment and compiling poor families of transporters on starvation and hunger.
The association president termed the prolonged ban on renewal of rout permits of old-model vehicles, as anti-poor policy, which should be ended. He further said that vehicles are not in working condition due to delayed in issuance to route permits. He demanded of the provincial government to issuance of route permits on vehicles condition, instead of their aging.
He blamed that the provincial government policy was merely aimed to make successful the proposed mass transit project in provincial capital Peshawar, and rendered thousands of people, jobless and starvation of their families, attached with transports sector.
He demanded the authorities concerned to immediate lift ban on route permits, otherwise, they would go for a token wheel-jam strike on January 25, followed by holding of protest demonstrations and rallies in the city.