The reasons behind the ongoing transport strike are “genuine” and the Conrad Sangma government is to be blamed for such disruption in the State taking place, Secretary of the Meghalaya Congress, Bajop Pyngrope, said today.
Although the international price of fuel is below its peak, the State and Central governments are exploiting the common man by imposing high fuel taxes, he added.
“What the commercial drivers are agitating for is genuine and there’s nothing political about it because the fuel price is too high and the percentage the government is getting is quite a lot,” Pyngrope told Highland Post.
He also ridiculed Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong’s justification for the high State tax on auto fuels – that the funds go to the education sector – calling it baseless and said that if the NPP-led government cannot run things, it should resign and let the Congress back into power.
The Congress official also warned that Tynsong could be adding fuel to the fire by his confrontational approach towards the strikers, especially through his recent suggestion that the government could issue additional permits for new commercial vehicle operators that would crush the agitators.
“The regional parties (i.e. those who are allied with the NPP) who have a taste for power are also silent on this problem being faced by the common man because they are least bothered about anything other than their chairs because they have accumulated so much money,” Pyngrope stated, calling for a rollback in the price of fuel by at least Rs 10 per litre.
Meanwhile, the youth wing of the KHNAM has demanded that the State government hold talks immediately with the Meghalaya Joint Action Committee of Commercial Vehicles (MJACCV) over the ongoing transport strike.
With commercial vehicles off the roads for almost two weeks now because of the strike, the public are the ones suffering immense difficulties, with students, farmers and other ordinary folk desperate for relief, KHNAM youth wing president Thomas Passah said.
Commercial vehicles are on strike because of the high price of petrol (partly explained by high state taxes), revision of fares to the level before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and the requirement to pay their taxes in full despite not being allowed to ply their vehicles everyday during the pandemic.
“It is seen that the State share from the fuel price has been one of the major factors in the all-time high increase in the price of fuel in the state,” Passah said.
“Additionally the Covid cess levied by the State last year has further contributed to the price rise. States like Assam and Nagaland have withdrawn their Covid cess on fuel and liquor. In the current situation and looking at the steep rise in the price of fuel, the Meghalaya government should also withdraw the Covid cess,” Passah said.
Higher prices of fuel will have a knock-on effect on the price of essential commodities, especially as Meghalaya is totally dependent on road transport, with practically no access to railways. Higher prices for consumers who have already endured the Covid-19 pandemic will be too big a burden to bear, he added.
Passah also expressed dismay “over the silence” of the regional parties on the issue and demanded that the government immediately call for talks with the agitating organisations to bring about a solution.
KHNAM also called for addressing issues faced by commuters, such as overcharging by taxi drivers, overcrowding of taxis and safety.
“The MJACCV and the government should work hand in hand to ensure uninterrupted essential service to the citizens of the State,” Passah concluded.
