CHITTAGONG, Oct 29: The cargo transport operators of greater Chittagong called off their 48-hour transport strike from 5.00 pm on Sunday, following a call from the road transport and bridges minister and a successful meeting with the commissioner of Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP).
Earlier, delivery of goods from the country's prime seaport was fully suspended from 6.00 am to 5.00 pm on Sunday, the first day of the strike, as the cargo transport owners and workers enforced the strike.
All types of vehicles, including trucks, covered vans, prime movers, trailers and tank lorries remained off the roads and highways in Chittagong, Cox's Bazar, Rangamati, Khagrachhari and Bandarban districts under greater Chittagong.
Trucks, covered vans, tank lorries and container-carrying long vehicles were seen lying idle at the temporary terminals at Nimtala Bishwa Road, Port Truck Terminal, West Madarbari, Kadamtali, Majhirghat and many other points in the port-city.
Earlier in the day, businesses expressed their concern at the suspension of cargo delivery by all modes of transportation from Chittagong Port. Delivery of inbound and outbound cargo was hampered, and it added to the slow pace of unloading goods over the weeks.
The trade-body leaders observed that the strike should be immediately withdrawn for greater interest of the national economy, as it hampers export and import activities.
Md Abul Hashem, a leader of Ponya Paribahan Malik Shramik Oikya Parishad, a greater Chittagong-based association, told the FE correspondent that the strike has been called off from 5.00 pm.
He said they had conversation with Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader in the noon, who invited the transport leaders to sit in a meeting in the capital on Monday. The leaders responded to the minister's call and were leaving for Dhaka on Sunday night.
He further said following the conversation with the minister the transport owners and workers met CMP Commissioner Md Iqbal Bahar in the afternoon. The meeting lasted for an hour, and there they announced that the strike was withdrawn from 5.00 pm.
The transport owners and workers called the strike to press home their 5-point charter of demands, including stopping realising extra charges in the name of monitoring on highways and harassment by highway police, and protesting "unusual" road use tax claimed by Chittagong City Corporation (CCC).
Secretary of the association Abu Bakkar Siddique said the minister has agreed to sit with their leaders to discuss their problems.
He said their demands are very old, and they have been urging the local authorities concerned to fix up the problems. CCC has set road use tax at Tk 10,000 per vehicle for trucks and covered vans, which was previously Tk 500 only.
He also said they have been demanding easing issuance of licence for drivers and helpers, bringing an end to police harassment on the highways, and construction of a separate terminal for trucks, covered vans and prime movers near the Chittagong Port's proposed Bay Terminal (Jelepara).
President of Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) Mahbubul Alam thanked the cargo transport operators for calling off the strike, as cargo delivery from the port was suspended for 11 hours for it.
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