Agitated drivers intercept traffic to oppose strike

Statesman News Service SILIGURI, Feb. 21: A group of agitated Siliguri taxi owners and drivers today intercepted all Sikkim vehicles at Salugara near Siliguri this morning because their vehicles were not being allowed to move through the NH31A to Sikkim due to the GJMM called an indefinite bandh in Darjeeling hills. The agitators held up over 30 Sikkim taxis at Salugara, offloaded the passengers, and asked the vehicles to return to Sikkim. 

The Siliguri taxi owners and drivers are unhappy with the GJMM, which is not allowing vehicles with West Bengal number plates to pass through the NH31A to Sikkim. The same was not applicable for vehicles bearing Sikkim number plates though. The NH31A is the only link to Sikkim from Siliguri and a sizeable portion of the arterial road passes through the Darjeeling hills. As part of their indefinite bandh, the GJMM picketers are not allowing the West Bengal vehicles to Sikkim since 20 February, thus directly affecting the livelihood of the Siliguri taxi owners and drivers.