BANGALORE: The 24-hour nationwide `chakka jam' call given by the All-India Motor Transport Congress turned out to be a damp squib in the State as trucks and other commercial vehicles plied as usual.

Busy commercial areas such as the APMC Yard at Yeshwantpur and industrial areas in Peenya and Bommasandra reported normal operation of trucks on Tuesday. Transportation of construction material such as sand, steel and granite went on as usual.

Though the Federation of Karnataka State Lorry Owners and Agents Associations, which had supported the strike, called a press conference this morning, neither its president G.R. Shanmugappa nor general secretary B.V. Narayanappa turned up. Mr. Shanmugappa was not available even on the telephone.

The Federation of Karnataka State Lorry Owners' Associations, which did not come out in support of the strike, attributed the poor response to a lack of communication and coordination among various associations. Its president, B. Chenna Reddy, told The Hindu that the federation did not ask its members to participate in the strike as no coordination meeting was held.

`Lower sales tax'

Mr. Shanmugappa's federation, meanwhile, has decried the inaction of the State Government in lowering sales tax on diesel. It said trucks from the State would fill their tanks at nearby Hosur where diesel was cheaper by Rs. 1.97 a litre.

The federation gave a 20-day ultimatum to the State Government to reduce sales tax on petrol and diesel to 12 per cent.

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