Lorry owners’ indefinite stir from today

Following an ‘indefinite strike’ call by the Udupi District Lorry Owners’ Association, as many as 2,000 trucks will remain off the roads in the district from October 18.

Udupi District Lorry Owners’ Association’s appeal for an indefinite strike is a protest against the district administration’s failure to solve the problem of scarcity of sand. The demand is to resume sand mining in the district. With no sand to transport, trucks are idling.

The Association Udupi taluk president Praveen Poojary said that failed assurances have had a negative impact on their business. Chandra Poojary from Kaup unit of Udupi district Lorry Owners’ Association said around 400 trucks from Kaup, 800 from Udupi, 500 from Kundapur and 400 from Karkala will halt from October 18.

The indefinite strike will go on till the district administration comes up with a solution. He warned that construction materials being ferried for the houses constructed under different government schemes will not be blocked by the association members.

Gunakar Shetty, president of Kundapur unit of Udupi district Lorry Owners’ Association urged the district administration to ensure that sand mining resumes at the earliest.

He said a meeting will be held on October 22, to decide the future course of action by the association members.

Udupi Deputy commissioner Priyanka Mary Francis said out of the total four blocks sand mining will be allowed in two blocks in non-CRZ areas in Karkala soon.

Around 20,000 metric tons of sand can be extracted from these two blocks. The work order will be issued shortly. Sand mining will be permitted in other two blocks in Byndoor once the model code of conduct which is in force due to parliamentary by-elections, was lifted, she said.