Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Sunday said that the Congress-led Punjab Government was depriving “poor” truckers of their livelihood by reducing wheat transportation rates.
“This is affecting as much as 100 percent increase in labour contract rates for the present procurement season which are being bagged by the Congress leaders,” said the SAD spokesman Parambans Singh Romana.
He said that the government was “threatening truckers with draconian measures” including invoking ESMA to force truckers to reduce their tender rates by 40 to 50 percent. He added that 80 percent of truckers in Punjab have single trucks and they were used mostly for procurement purpose only as they were old and could not travel long distances.
“It is these truckers who are set to lose their livelihood with the Congress government becoming adamant on reducing their transportation rates by 40 to 50 percent,” he pointed.
Romana alleged that even as the government was forcing poor truckers to sell their vehicles and lose their means of livelihood, it had agreed to substantial increase in labour contracts, at places as much as 100 percent, to please its own leaders who were behind most of the labour contracts awarded during the present procurement season.
“The situation is such that in Faridkot, one Vijay Cooperative Society, which is backed by local Congress MlA, has been awarded labour contract at a 115 percent increase. This is done despite the fact that Faridkot Palledar Cooperative Society had filed tender at one percent increase. The contract was not awarded to Palledar Society despite all its documents being found in order,” he pointed.
Asking the government to save money by breaking the cartels being formed by Congress leaders to usurp labour contracts at steep hikes, Romana said that the governing should simultaneously give relief to truckers who were being forced out of the tendering process due to imposition of rate cap in the new transportation policy.