Patiala: A strike by truck drivers has driven people to panic, making them queue up to buy fuel in the district. The administration has started taking the necessary measures to ensure an adequate fuel supply.
Many fuel stations in the district ran dry today, causing scuffles between staff and customers as vehicle owners formed long queues at fuel stations across the district — and yet failed to get fuel. A delegation led by Jasdeep Singh Shergil, president of the truck union, met Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney and handed over a memorandum, demanding easing of the law on ‘hit-a-run’ cases. Later, the tipper union and truck driver association carried out a protest march across the city.
Truck and taxi drivers, along with bus operators, have started a nationwide strike to oppose the provision of Rs 7 lakh penalty or a 10-year jail term in hit-and-run cases under the newly passed Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The All-India Motor Transport Congress said these provisions, which have yet to come into force, can lead to undue harassment of drivers and must be recalled.
Jaswant Singh, a resident of Jujhar Nagar, said that he was in a queue for over an hour. “By the time my turn came, the fuel station had run dry,” he said. Jaswant was not alone; many residents related such an ordeal. The residents rue that it is always the common man who suffers in these kinds of situations.
Comments are closed.