Kerala - Kozhikode   

Bus-lorry strike continues

Staff Reporter

KOZHIKODE: Normal life was affected for the third consecutive day on Wednesday as the All Kerala Bus Operators Association, and the All Kerala Lorry Owners Association continued with their indefinite strike as part of a State-wide protest against fixing of speed governors in heavy vehicles. Strike was total in district as buses and lorries stayed off the road.

Stray incidents of stone throwing on lorries that operated were reported at some markets in the city.

P.M. Mohammed Ali, president, All Kerala Lorry Owners Association, said here that the lorry owners have no other option than to stay off the road in view of the stand taken by the authorities concerned.

`No guarantee'

Although an ordinance was to be promulgated, there was no guarantee that the President of India would give assent.

The Government had not agreed to the proposal of heavy vehicle owners to relax the rules either. As many as 20,000 heavy vehicles were awaiting registration in the State, he added.

However, the office going public and the general public made use of the services of auto rickshaws, taxi-cabs and other vehicles that had been pressed into service by innovative entrepreneurs, to ferry passengers. Commuters pool ed services of auto rickshaws, and jeeps that operated as taxis. Short distance commuters increasingly made use of the train services too.

The Kozhikode railway station, and other suburban stations in the district were crowded by commuters who made use of the train services, at different times of the day.

Kozhikode city witnessed an unprecedented influx of jeeps, especially from the rural centres such as Kunnamangalam, Palazhi, and centres in Vadakara and Koyilandy taluks that operated as taxi vehicles on a point-to-point basis.

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