Thiruvananthapuram: The strike by the workers of oil tankers attached to the outlets of the Indian Oil Corporation, which entered the fifth day on Tuesday, was withdrawn following the decision to withhold the tender process till December 3. All processes relating to the tender have been frozen. The norms for the tender would be revised to safeguard the interest of the tanker lorry workers.
This was decided at the conciliatory meeting convened by Transport Minister A.K. Sassendran with IOC officials and the drivers’ unions. The tankers would resume their services from Wednesday morning. The tanker lorries that ferry fuel to the retail outlets from the Kochi and Kozhikode depots of the IOC were on strike demanding modification of the tender conditions, including fare.
Mr Saseendran told reporters after the meeting that the government would negotiate between the management and the trade unions to ensure a better deal to the workers. The IOC management has made it clear that some of the demands like including owners of single lorry in tenders for retail fuel supply were non-negotiable. On the demand to hike the fare from Rs 2.02 per km to Rs 3.50, the company warned that it would result in further escalation of fuel cost.
