Truckers stage demo against new draft law
Truck drivers and transport workers yesterday staged demonstration by parking their vehicles on roads near Tejgaon truck stand in the capital, protesting the draft Road Transport Act.
Witnesses said the transport workers' demo, which started around 6:00pm and continued till 12:00am, greatly inconvenienced commuters while many goods-laden trucks could not reach the adjacent Karwan Bazar kitchen market due to the road blocks.
Meanwhile, transport workers said the provision in the act for a maximum punishment of five years' imprisonment of drivers due to deaths from reckless driving was too harsh.
Monir Talukdar, president of Bangladesh Truck and Covered Van Drivers' Association, said the punishment in the proposed law was too high because no driver willingly committed accidents.
He claimed most accidents on highways took place due to unlawful plying of smaller vehicles like motorbikes and human haulers. Pedestrians also jaywalked on busy roads which caused accidents, he said.
Meanwhile, Rustom Ali, general secretary of Bangladesh Truck-Covered Van Owners' Association, yesterday said workers and owners were dissatisfied with some other clauses of the proposed Road Transport Act too.
“The monetary fines for some offenses, like for not having driving licences and fitness certificates, is too high in the proposed act,” he told this newspaper last night.
He also said they would soon stage demonstrations after talking with other workers' and owners' bodies.
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