Aggrieved tourist taxi owners and drivers under the umbrella of the Joint Action Committee of All Ri-Bhoi District Passenger vehicles protested in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office here over unpaid government bills going back to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The protestors demanded the immediate release of their pending dues that were incurred when the taxis were requisitioned for Covid-19 and election duty.
The JAC decided to stop ferrying passengers and over 300 passenger vehicles and more than 1,000 drivers and owners gathered at the DC’s office.
The protest did cause distress to passengers, who had to use private vehicles and buses instead. Some canteen vendors also joined in the protest, as they also claimed not to have received their dues from the time of the election this year.
Vincent Sohkhwai, the general secretary of the JAC, stated that they had been demanding their dues from time to time from the Ri-Bhoi administration but their pleas had fallen on deaf ears.
After an hour of protesting in front of the office, the DC, Arpit Uphadhaya addressed them and told the drivers and owners that the district has yet to receive funds from the state government to clear their bills.
At the request of the DC, Sohkhwai said that the JAC has agreed to wait for another 15 days for the release of their dues. The canteen vendors also gave the same deadline to the government.
