Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Dec 4: The transporters operating in Kashmir today said that the sector is already functioning in loss and on top of it the Government has rolled back the 30 per cent hike in the fare given in the wake of COVID-19.
They said that there has been a hike of around 10-12 rupees in the diesel litre so far, along with other expenses that have also increased, but there has been no hike in the fare and some that were given has been rolled back leaving the stakeholder aghast.
“We are already operating in losses; the Government should have taken a holistic view of the situation, but what they did was the opposite,” Shabir Ahmad Matta, Chairman All Kashmir Transport Welfare Association (AKTWA) told Excelsior.
He said that there has to be a yearly increment in the fare keeping in view an increase in other related expenses, “but that was never done,” he said.
He said that they will not take any extreme step in this regard, but have already met with the representatives of the Government who have assured them that their problems would be assured. He said that the transporters have returned to the old fares as soon as the order was issued.
On the other side, the people are alleging that the majority of transporters do not adhere to the Government orders and are charging the passengers with the same fare. “They misbehave with the passengers and they charge as per the older fares, they do not consider the rolling back of 30 per cent hike,” Javeed Ahmad, a passenger said.
However, the Chairman of the AKTWA said that while the Government orders are being followed, he will still look into the matter and will make sure that there is compliance.
“I make sure that the orders are followed; we will talk to the Government and will try to reach to some conclusion in this regard,” he said.
He added that there is a need for taking measures to safeguard the transport sector and make sure that it is allowed to flourish given the setback it had to face due to the COVID-19 lockdown.
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