Tourism stakeholders and the Meghalaya People’s Labour Union (MPLU) led a delegation to the Commissioner and Secretary of the Transport Department, MR Synrem, today to call for an urgent resolution to the more than a week-long transport strike, which has badly affected Khasi-Jaintia Hills.
The tourism stakeholders included representatives from the Meghalaya State Coordination Committee of Transport Operators, Owners and Drivers Associations, Tour Operators Association of Meghalaya (TOAM) and the Federation of Shillong Hotels (FOSH).
Synrem was requested to find a solution of the ongoing strike by the Meghalaya Joint Action Committee of Commercial Vehicles (MJACCV).
It was pointed out to Synrem that the economy of the state was in a precarious position even before the strike because of the negative effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, which Meghalaya is only slowly recovering from. The public transport strike could also have cross-border implications as tourist taxi associations in Assam have expressed concern about the disruption of their business and are contemplating taking action as they were not consulted beforehand.
“The tourism sector depends heavily on the transport sector and the transport sector, on the whole, is an essential, intrinsic service in the economic infrastructure and its revival in the age of the Covid-19 pandemic becomes imperative,” a statement said.
The delegation also discussed the issue of financial relief to the commercial transport operators and Synrem assured that necessary relief would be forthcoming as the central government has already extended the validity of vehicle papers, such as permits and fitness certificates. The government has also agreed to grant tax relief from March 2020 (when the pandemic hit) up to March 31 this year.
“We are grateful for the notification issued today by the Transport Department towards this end after our discussion,” a statement signed by the MPLU and the other groups said.
Meanwhile, the Grand Council of Chiefs in Meghalaya too has urged the State government to resolve the ongoing strike by commercial vehicles to ease the difficulties faced by the general public.
In a letter to Chief Minister Conrad Sangma today, the council said that the ongoing strike called by commercial vehicles under the banner of Meghalaya Joint Action Committee of Commercial Vehicles (MJACCV) has cause immense hardships to the public especially the poor and those in need of medical treatment in rural areas.
