Traders boycott trucks to protest syndicate system
TERHATHUM, APR 11 -
Traders in the hilly region of Koshi zone have completely stopped shipping goods from Monday in protest against the “syndicate system” and doubling of freight charges by transporters. The price for hauling cargo has been jacked up to Rs 4 per kg from Rs 1.60 to Rs 2 earlier.
The United Hilly Transporters’ Association, Hile and the United Transporters’ Service Committee, Dharan have recently re-imposed a “turn-by-turn system”. Under this scheme, trucks operate on a rotating basis giving no choice of carrier to the shipper. These two transporters’ organisations are responsible for hauling essential food items and textiles to the hilly districts of Koshi zone.
Due to the protest by traders, transportation of goods to Terhathum, Dhankuta, Sankhuwasabha and Bhojpur districts has stopped. Although
the Supreme Court has ruled the syndicate system to be illegal, truck companies in various regions have being defying the decision of the highest court in the land.
Mahendra Kafle, general secretary of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Terhathum, said they had launched the protest after the transporters reintroduced the illegal syndicate system. The traders blamed the two transporters’ associations for reviving the banned system.
On Sunday, the chamber called an emergency meeting in Myanglung after truckers decided to bring back the syndicate system. The conference urged all the traders in the hilly districts to protest against the illegal system imposed by transporters.
Traders from Terhathum handed over a memorandum to the District Administration Office after transporters raised the freight charges. Chamber president Sabha Poudel said they had to launch the protest after their plea remained unheard. According to him, they have demanded withdrawal of the syndicate system as the hike in transportation charges would eventually hit consumers in the form of higher retail prices.
A trader Tulasi Dhakal said that they would not allow trucks to enter the district until the transporters’ unions took back their decisions. “As traders have to raise prices in line with the increase in transport costs, consumers will suffer,” he said.
Another trader Balkrishna Dhungana said they were unable to make deliveries on time after transporters implemented the syndicate system. However, transporters said that they had not imposed the syndicate system, only hiked the cargo rates. President of the United Hilly Transporters’ Association Sita Ram Shrestha said they had just increased their prices due to rising operating costs.
Source: The Kathmandu Post
