SRINAGAR: Transporters at Parimpora Fruit Mandi on Wednesday threatened to go for an indefinite strike in case the demands which include better road facility and adequate power supply in one of the largest wholesale fruit markets (Mandi) of Kashmir are not fulfilled by the government at earliest.
Transporters alleged that despite repeated assurances, the government has miserably failed to repair dilapidated roads which they said were macadamized way back in 2006.
“Truckers arriving here from different mandi’s of the country spent thousands of rupees for service and maintenance after unloading their trucks as the condition of road in Parimpora fruit mandi has turned from bad to worse. We met several higher-ups in the administration including that of the Advisor to LG for redressal of our genuine grievances but no concrete steps were taken to mitigate the problems transporters face,” Mohammad Maqbool, an executive member of association told ‘Kashmir Images’.
He said the transporters face several problems that the government has overlooked for years, forcing them to adopt the path of ‘confrontation’.
Lone said the transporters refuse to unload their trucks in Parimpora fruit mandi due to dilapidated roads besides poor power supply has added to their woes.
“Sometimes trucks wait for unloading for days altogether, forcing them to sell the perishable items in the middle of the road. How far is this genuine to make truckers wait for days and sometimes for weeks? Neither the government repair roads nor bother to cause harassment in one way or the other,” he added.
Mohammad Sidiq Ronga, who heads Parimpora Fruit Mandi Association as its president, told Kashmir Images the responsibility of inconvenience to people shall lie on the government in case their issues are not addressed at the earliest.
“We have always been insisting to the higher-ups of the administration to come and visit the market and see what sort of complexity we transporters face on the part of the dilapidated roads. Now we have decided to go for an indefinite strike in case the government again fails to repair damaged roads and provide adequate power supply to the market,” added Ronga.
