Transporters threat to suspend rice supply
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, October 02 2013:
Alleging mismanagement by Food Corporation of India (FCI) authorities for various inconveniences being endured by many transporters, All Manipur Road Transport Drivers' and Motor Workers' Union has threatened to suspend rice transportation if necessary arrangement is not made to facilitate unloading of rice loads.
It is said that over 200 rice-laden trucks that arrived some days back from the Jiribam godown of FCI and over 100 trucks engaged in transporting the food item from the Dimapur storage facility of the FCI are currently stationed around Airport road, Sangaiprou and Koirengei area with the loads.
Speaking to newspersons at its office today, Union general secretary H Kulamani said that the drivers and their assistants constrained to stay with the loaded vehicles have been facing problems of proper sanitation as there are neither facility to relief themselves nor have access to clean water.
While FCI officials have been citing intake overload at the Sangaiprou godown for not allowing the truckers to unload the goods, Kulamani alleged contract related mismanagement by FCI authorities for similar situation at the Koirengei facility of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution System inspite of the State Government's directive for unloading the rice loads.
The secretary also suggested that the State Government either put on hold transportation of rice into Manipur or make necessary arrangement for emptying the trucks.
Compared to unloading of 50-60 truck loads on a daily basis at the FCI godown in the recent past the intake capacity at present is only about 10 truck loads thereby resulting in frequent traffic jams on both Tiddim Line and Koirengei area of Imphal-Dimapur road, Kulamani expressed.
Contrary to absence of facility for storing huge quantity of the State's staple food item superfine rice variety is being sold at an exorbitant rate of over Rs 20 per kilogram while the local variety has crossed the Rs 30 a kg mark, he maintained.
Conveying drivers' strong resentment that their toil in negotiating the highly dilapidated highways to ensure the people do not face food grain problem have gone in vain due to the transport operators compelled to stay with the loads, Kulamani said the drivers are feeling highly agitated against the callousness of the FCI authorities.
He also reiterated the threat that the drivers would be constrained to suspend rice transportation activities in case arrangement is not made for unloading the loads at the earliest possible.