Lorry strike hit Kochi Port

Kochi: The indefinite State-wide strike by lorry operators has affected the movement of containers to and from the Cochin Port Trust, as the container trailer operators had also extended their support for the ongoing strike.


A senior official at the India Gateway Terminal at Willingdon Island said that the operations at the terminal has come to a standstill from Sunday as there was no movement of containers. On an average, the IGT used to get around 400 trailers on a daily basis and this has come to `zero' on account of the strike.


As the lorry operators had announced the date of the strike very much in advance, he said a lot of cargo has been diverted to the neighbouring ports.


At a time when the terminal is poised for a 25 per cent growth in the current fiscal, these kinds of incidents will affect the image badly. It is time that all port-related operations should be brought under the purview of the Essential Service Maintenance Act (ESMA), he added.


The lorry owners, who began their indefinite strike from Saturday midnight, are protesting against the 10 per cent hike in road tax announced in the Budget and the withdrawal of the decision not to collect road taxes from truck owners that did not fit speed governors.


However, they claimed that the strike was not at all against the installation of speed governors in vehicles as directed by the Supreme Court.


The Government was trying to link the demands to the speed governors, they alleged.


Besides container movement, transportation of bulk cargoes such as iron ore, logs, scrap, potash for various fertiliser companies in South India as well as pipes imported from China by the three civic bodies in the State as part of the Japan Drinking Water Scheme has also been affected. A spokesman of the Seafood Exporters Association of India said that as of now there is no problem for the movement of marine products in view of the off season.


If the strike continues for a week, it will definitely have an impact on the exports of marine products from Kochi.


The Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that the strike would definitely throw shipping schedules and consignments delivery arrangements in total disarray. It will seriously affect the business community since they will be unable to fulfil their export commitments in a timely manner.


The Chamber appealed to all the concerned to desist from such action and to find other ways by which contentious issues can be negotiated amicably. On the other hand, it also requested the Government to deal swiftly and firmly with such strikes.