Suppliers’ body demands answers over plying of Bhutan trucks

TURA: The All Garo Hills Construction Material Suppliers and Workers Association (AGHCMSWA) along with the Exporters’ Association of Dalu (EAD) recently sought answers from Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on the plying of boulder trucks from Bhutan to Bangladesh on the routes in Garo Hills.
The associations sought answers as to why the same was being done when Bhutan is closer to West Bengal or Dhubri.
The associations also said that the export of boulders could have been done either from Mankachar or Mahendraganj and questioned why the current route is being allowed to be used.
Pointing out that these trucks are not weighed despite weight bridges being set up along the route, the associations questioned why they are being exempted when the same is mandatory for local trucks.
The associations also claimed that the trucks are being exempted from paying any kind of road tax and questioned why it was so.
“We, as citizens, are paying GST for every business we take up. We are plying our vehicles after paying road tax. But Bhutan, being a foreign country, is being exempted from these taxes,” they said.
Pointing out that the reckless driving by these trucks were posing a threat to the general public as well as damaging the roads in the region, the associations resolved to take measures to stop their plying while, at the same time, seeking the chief minister’s intervention on the matter.