Mining truckers threaten to intensify agitation

Ponda: After an inconclusive meeting with the chief minister and BJP leaders, mining truck owners have now threatened to intensify their agitation from Monday if Vedanta Limited starts transporting ore from its mines. Vedanta Limited had temporarily stopped transporting the ore due to the agitation.
The truckers, who have the support of senior Congress leaders and independent MLAs, are expecting Vedanta Limited to resume transporting ore from Monday.
At a meeting on Friday afternoon, truckers demanded that companies pay the same ore-transportation rate that was paid to them before mining was banned in September 2012; a rate of 12.25, per kilometre, per tonne. They back this demand by claiming that diesel was 39.60 per litre at that point, and it has gone up marginally since.
President of all Goa truck owners’ association, Nilkanth Gawas, said that the chief minister had stated that the rate cannot be hiked as the demand for ore has dropped.
Gawas suggested that the government bear a part of the “burden” if the transportation rate is hiked. tnn