bus strike: Bhubaneswar, (Reporterspen), Oct 7: The proposed bus strike by private operators in Western and Southern Odisha was called off on Monday following productive discussions with the government regarding their demands. According to sources, the bus owners’ associations from these regions decided to halt the strike after meeting with Commerce and Transport Minister Bibhuti Bhushan Jena.
The Minister convened the meeting in Berhampur to address the associations’ concerns. Previously, the associations had announced a 24-hour bus strike across 14 districts in opposition to the state government’s decision to introduce tier-II buses under the Location Accessible Multi-modal Initiative (LAccMI) scheme.
One bus owner explained that while they supported the launch of tier-I LAccMI buses connecting blocks to panchayats, they strongly opposed the implementation of tier-II buses, which would operate between blocks and district headquarters, leading to significant financial losses for private bus operators.
