Telangana Entry Tax for AP Vehicles hit commuters hard

Passengers plying between Vijayawada, Kurnool and in north coastal Andhra were put to inconvenience on Wednesday as majority of private buses stayed off roads in protest against Telangana government’s move to collect “motor vehicle tax” from AP transport vehicles.

Likewise, transportation of goods and commodities too were hit as many truck operators suspended their services. There was some respite in the evening after few private bus operators resumed their services following court orders to produce indemnity bonds at check posts on the State borders till next Tuesday.

Every day, over 100 private buses are operated from Vijayawada to Hyderabad but majority of these buses were off the road since Tuesday night. Passengers, who booked tickets in advance, were refunded and others had to cancel their trips. Trucks engaged in transportation of cement, iron, vegetables and other commodities held back resulting in short supply in state capital. Benz Circle, Hanumanpeta, Police Control Room junctions, which generally are abuzz with transport activity, wore a deserted look. In Visakhapatnam, a majority of the 60 private bus operators withdrew their Hyderabad services.

Meanwhile the A.P. Lorry Owner’s Association has decided to stop all transport vehicles going to Telangana State. "We have decided to stop vehicles from other States bound for TS on the AP border (almost 300 vehicles per day) till entry tax is withdrawn,” said the association vice-president M. Janakiram Reddy.

In Nellore, passengers had to cancel their trips and in the temple town of Tirupati, pilgrims faced severe inconvenience after private buses stayed off the road and passengers had to depend on RTC buses or trains to reach Hyderabad.