VELLORE: The ailing truck transport sector has been miffed by the lack of a stimulus package to bail out the industry which has been bearing the brunt of the lockdown induced by the COVID-19 pandemic though it has been eased partially.
With no demand, except for ferrying essential commodities, truck operators are feeling the heat. Their plea for a bailout package has fallen on deaf ears.
"We asked for a minimum rescue package from the Centre like waiver of interest on EMIs, extension of validity of statutory documents to run vehicles, extension of validity of motor insurance, waiver of state taxes and soft loans," Bal Malkit Singh, chairman of the core committee of the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), told The New Indian Express.
"However, the government has failed to provide the desired relief measures," he rued. With the cash on hand having dried up, most truck operators are finding it difficult to run their vehicles which have been stranded at various places.
Singh noted, "The vehicles are getting stranded as the transporters are not having enough money to run them nor is there any demand in the market."
President of State Federation of Lorry Owners Association-Tamil Nadu (SFLOA-TN) MR Kumarasamy said the sector is heading towards severe financial stress.
"We clamoured for waiver of state road tax at least for a quarter and doing away with the insurance premium as there were no vehicles on the road during the lockdown. But none of the demands were met. Without a bailout package, we are being pushed into extreme financial stress," he lamented.
It's not only small fleet operators but also large transporters who have received a big blow due to the lockdown, he said.
Truck operators are facing difficulties in repaying loans taken from banks and non-banking financial companies.
"The NBFCs have just resumed operations. We will soon feel the heat because many of the operators have borrowed huge amounts from them," Kumarasamy said.
If the current situation continues, it will have an adverse impact on the truck transport sector and essential supply chains.
"In the near future, more vehicles will go off the roads widening the demand and supply gap. It will lead to an increase in freight rates, pressure on essential supply chains and enormous loss of livelihoods," underscored Singh.