The truck owners, who are opposed to the transportation of minerals from the district through trains, alleged that their livelihood is at stake as the government stopped using their vehicles.
"The truck owners association of Keonjhar, Barbil and Joda have participated in the rail-roko agitation from today protesting the state government's decision to transport all the minerals through trains," said Keonjhar District Truck Owners Association president Ramakant Nayak.
Stating that about 10,000 trucks were earlier engaged in the transportation of minerals from the district, Nayak said
that about one lakh people would turn jobless due to the government's decision of using train as the only mode of transportation of minerals.
Though they had earlier decided to go for rain-roko agitation from May 2, it was postponed due to intervention of the district administration.
The truck owners had been demanding transportation of at least 40 per cent of minerals through their vehicle while remaining 60 per cent could be moved out of the district by train, Nayak pointed out.
"We have no option than stopping mineral loaded trains at different railway station," Nayak said adding that there was no restriction on the movement of passenger trains in the districts.