Staff Correspondent: As goods transport owners and workers enforced a strike demanding the withdrawal of excel load of vehicles, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Tuesday said the government will in no way allow overloaded trucks to ply highways.
�No overloaded truck will be allowed to ply highways. The vehicles must run on roads maintaining the excel load of vehicles set by the government,� he said.
The minister was talking to reporters at the Secretariat after coming out midway of a meeting convened following the indefinite strike enforced by Goods Transport Owners and Workers� Oikya Parishad in 21 southwestern districts, reports news agency UNB.
Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan, State Minister for LGRD and Cooperatives Moshiur Rahman Ranga and transport workers� leaders were present at the meeting.
Responding to a query about extorting money from transport workers on highways, the minister said, �We�ll surely take action against the offenders if we receive any specific allegation.�
The Goods Transport Owners and Workers� Association enforced the indefinite strike in the 21 southwestern districts from Monday to press home its 12-point demand, including an end to harassment by law enforcers and withdrawal of excel load of vehicles issued by the government.
It, however, withdrew the strike following assurance of looking into their demands at the meeting.
Due to the strike, trucks, lorries, tank-lorries, covered-vans and pickups remained off the roads in the 21 districts for the last two days, affecting activities at different land ports, including Benapole and Bhomra ones.