Valley
No renewal, listing of transport committees
In a bold move against transport syndicates, the government has decided not to renew registration of associations/committees of transport entrepreneurs with immediate effect.In a bold move against transport syndicates, the government has decided not to renew registration of associations/committees of transport entrepreneurs with immediate effect.
A Cabinet meeting on Tuesday took a decision to this effect after transport entrepreneurs decided to take to the streets against the government’s move of opening route permits on all roads across the country for competitive distribution by amending the Transport Management Directives-2004.
According to the Organisation Registration Act (2034), the government decided not to renew the transportation associations and stop registration of new committees, Energy Minister Barsha Man Pun said. If someone needs to register new associations related to transportation, requirements have to be met as specified in the Company and Cooperative Acts.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Ministry of Home Affairs had warned transport entrepreneurs of scrapping their registration if they resorted to protests by halting transport services, which have been put under essential services.
The ministry said in a statement that the government would proceed in accordance with constitutional provisions to scrap the registration of transportation committees that flout government directives.
“We’ll scrap registration of transport companies that go against the directives of the Associations Registration Act (2034) and will take necessary action as provided by the Essential Services Operation Act-2014 if transport entrepreneurs go ahead with their strike,” read the statement.
The government also decided to seize public vehicles and run them with the help of security forces to foil the transport entrepreneurs’ strike. The Federation of Nepalese National Transport Entrepreneurs (FNNTE) announced on Monday to enforce a public transport strike across the country on May 3 against the government’s moves against syndicate in the sector. The federation has also announced an indefinite strike, while plying vehicles by flouting the route permits from May 9 with an aim to create chaos.
“Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and Nepal Army have drivers. We’llrun their vehicles using them,” said Home Secretary Prem Rai.
The Home Ministry has been coordinating with the Department of Transport Management for two weeks to end the transport monopoly. Eleven committees of public vehicle operators in the first week of April decided not to allow other buses ply the Araniko Highway route unless the Department of Transport Management scrapped the route permit issued to Mayur Yatayat, which runs 24 new buses with additional facilities for passengers.
“They might have come forward collectively now. If they launch a strike, we’ll take back their route permits and give them to other entrepreneurs who apply,” said Rupnarayan Bhattarai, director general of the department. The FNNTE is coordinating with other entrepreneurs over its planned protest against amendment to the Transport Management Directives-2004.