Shadow Correspondent
Jammu, July, 14
Sulking over no relief package to the transporters, delay in the resumption of commercial transportation, delegation of transporters on Tuesday called on former Minister and senior Congress leader Raman Bhalla at Guru Nanak Nagar Ward 44 . Prominent among those present on the occasion include DCC General Secretary Urban, Vijay Singh Chib, DCC General Secretary Urban Aman Bawa, Balwinder Singh Rinku, Vijay Khajuria Viju, Surinder Singh Raina, Manpreet Singh, Rajinder Singh Raina, Balwant Singh Raina, Kesar Singh Sudan, Daljeet Singh, Harvinder Singh, Surinder Singh beside others.They said government has announced a relief package for all the sectors but they have been left high and dry. Transporters have suffered huge losses due to the lockdown. While rail and air traffic have been resumed and liquor vends have been opened, they are at loss to run their vehicles in J&K,” A large number of drivers and helpers are on verge of bankruptcy. The COVID-19 outbreak has left a devastating impact on the transport sector with thousands of drivers and helpers rendered jobless and struggling to survive the pandemic for last two months,” they said. They said that it is unfortunate that no specific package has been announced for the transporters, who have mostly taken loans from the banks and are unable to repay them.
Speaking on the occasion, Bhalla said that Transport sector needs urgent support to survive as more than 20 crore people are directly and indirectly dependent on this sector.He demanded “issuing advisory to the State Government/ UTs for tax holiday for Motor Vehicle Tax/Road Tax /State Tax/Good Tax/ Token Tax/Passenger Tax for the FY 2020-21.He also demanded extension of validity of fitness, permit (all Types), driving licence, registration or any other concerned document(s) whose extension of validity could not be processed due to lockdown and which have been expired since Feb 1, 2020 till the end of the current fiscal.“There is no revenue generation, no financial inflows as payments from parties are restrained and existing finance with the small operators as well as that of big operators is depleting fast,” he said. Expressing serious concern over the plight of transporters due to continued lockout, Bhalla demanded special package for drivers and conductors living in penury. Bhalla demanded a special financial package for the rehabilitation and revival of the transport industry including its allied sectors in Jammu and Kashmir. Last two months of the COVID lockdown has also added to the sufferings of this sector to an extent that people associated with this industry are not in a position to feed their families. So the government must come forward and provide them succor at this difficult time,” Bhalla observed.Bhalla said the vehicles of transporters remained idle in both divisions of Jammu and Kashmir and the government should respond compassionately to the demands put forth by the representatives of this vital industry.“A relief package for the sector including resumption of commercial transportation and a genuine fare hike in the wake of fuel prices and COVID-19 pandemic should be considered. Their demands should be accorded a positive consideration also because of huge losses suffered by them due to prevailing lockdown,” Bhalla said, adding that the public transport allowed while maintaining the COVID protocol has resulted only losses to sector as public mostly prefer personal transport whenever they go out.
Bhalla remarked that till the transport industry resumes its activities completely, the government should extend monthly financial assistance to the drivers, conductors and other allied workers of the transport industry besides waiving off interest on the loans taken by transporters and other fees during the lockdown period.He said that the people associated with the transport industry especially drivers and conductors are not in a position to run their day-to-day family affairs because of the lockdown, their condition is fast turning into human catastrophe.“ He appealed to Lieutenant Governor G C Murmu to address this issue on humanitarian grounds and order some monthly financial assistance for the daily rated workers associated with the transport sector,” Bhalla demanded.
Bhalla also appealed LG Murmu to address Sikh community resentment for not including its member in the recently constituted public service commission.“Not even a single member of the Sikh community has been included in the recently constituted six-member Public Service Commission. This makes it evident that the government has refused to recognise Sikh community and have no consideration for their legitimate rights for which they have been deprived time and again,” said Bhalla.“Despite the sizable population of Sikhs spread all over the Union territory, the present government has not taken cognizance of the rights and privileges for which they are entitled,” he added.
He appealed Lieutenant Governor GC Murmu to nominate a Sikh member in the Public Service Commission and also take a positive approach to all other genuine and legitimate rights of the community.
Questioning Govt’s economic package implementation for the most vulnerable sections of the society, Bhalla said that it must now focus on the small business and specific industries to keep the financial system running and minimise the coronavirus impact. But migrant workers, daily wage earners might not have the option of dipping in their cash reserves; they can neither borrow easily. This is a challenging time for all, be it the rich or poor, but it is more difficult for daily wage-earners who are struggling for even one meal a day. It is the moral responsibility of every citizen to help one another and follow social distancing. It is vital to not have emotional distance with people around. Along with health professionals, the police are doing a laudable job throughout the country in the fight against Covid and in ensuring the safety of citizens. If not for the police, the lockdown in most parts of the country would have ended in chaos. Health protection gear and devices are a must for the police as they have to handle all kinds of people on the streets. The medical fraternity should help and guide them with frequent checkups and safety measures.
Lockdown is not vacation time to move out, but to stay at home added Bhalla. Former Minister reiterated that this should be understood by all citizens. At the government level, more isolation wards should be set up and suspected patients should not be given a chance to escape. Helplines should be operational at all times and hospitals should be active 24×7. The police should act against those going out of their homes without reason. Action against fake news senders should also be taken. Media is playing an important role at a time when the entire world is combating the deadly virus. Without the media, people would not have understood the situation. It made people aware and helped to spread an appeal to the public to stay at home.
Media persons have been giving us an update about the pandemic, without thinking about their own safety. Today, because of the media, people from different religions, castes and regions have come together to fight against coronavirus and understand the importance of hygiene and health. While reinforcing aggressive measures, the authorities must find, isolate, test, treat and trace to prevent its spread. We can tackle coronavirus if every citizen understands his/her responsibility towards safety. We should focus on personal hygiene, garbage should be cleared and surrounding areas kept clean. Medical stores should be fully equipped with masks and sanitisers and these should not be sold at higher prices. It has been seen many times that whenever there is any emergency, the price of everything shoots up. This should be controlled and checked by the government.
