14000 Buses Off Road as Private Bus Owners Start Strike marring Festive Season in Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Around 14000 private buses across Odisha went off-road as the private bus owners’ association started indefinite strike from Friday morning. They have taken up this agitation to protest against the Location Accessible Multimodal Initiative (LAccMI) scheme of the state government.

Hundreds of passengers, most of them trying to reach their homes for the Durga Puja festivities crowded up bus stands across the state.

Debendra Sahu, Secretary, the private bus owners’ association said they resorted to the strike as a last resort as their discussion with the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) did not draw any result. On behalf of the association apologized for the strike during puja festivities.

“The state government during a meeting on October 9 had assured us that buses under the LAccMI scheme will operate only from panchayats to blocks and not to district headquarters. However, the government hasn’t kept its word,” he said.

Odisha Transport Minister, Tukuni Sahu termed the LAccMI bus services, opposed by private bus owners, as a people-friendly initiative.