Truck strike could choke factories

The proposed nationwide truck strike from today was likely to paralyse goods movement in West Bengal as all major local truck associations barring one would join the work stoppage.

Close to 4.5 lakh goods vehicles would be off the road. This may push up the wholesale commodity prices throughout the state.

In fact, retail prices has edged up as all major truck routes viz. Kolkata-Mumbai and Kolkata-Delhi, had already experienced increase in freight rates.

"Rates have gone up by Rs 2,500-3,000 per nine tonne truck in last four days as traders and companies are scrambling for capacity ahead of the strike on Saturday," K K Bansal, of All India Motor Transport Congress, said. Even though agitators have exempted essential commodities like medicine, vegetables and milk from the purview of strike, services would be disturbed.

"If truck owners do not want to load, we cannot force them," Bansal said.

Movement of essential commodities would help common people, he added. However, large manufacturing plants like Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL) faced the danger of piled-up inventory and delayed deliveries and sales.

HPL usually dispatched 3,000 tonne of polymer and 200 tonne of chemicals on average every day. The company is trying to maximise loading on Friday so that it could get payments from customers.

"We can go up to 5,000 tonne per day if required. The company is trying to arrange as many trucks as possible from Haldia area. Since we get payments as soon as the truck leaves factory gate, our intention is to step up delivery," company officials pointed out.

However, situation will go out of hand from Saturday as deliveries would stop.