Bhubaneswar: Due to hike in fuel prices, the All Odisha Private Bus Owners Association has threatened to suspend bus services indefinitely from November 16. The association said that the bus owners are incurring heavy losses daily due to the steep hike in diesel prices. It said that the Odisha government should come to the support of bus owners by reducing the State VAT on diesel and petrol
“The Government has been given an ultimatum till November 15 to cut State VAT on fuel, or the private buses would be forced to leave the roads November 16 for an indefinite period,” stated association secretary Debendra Kumar Sahoo in a release.
“Due to the increase in the price of fuel and other machinery, the buses are operating at a loss. The government’s cooperation is required to continue services,” added Sahoo. He also informed that since a deadline has been given to the government it is up to it to take a decision.
Fuel prices have gone through the roof since escalations began in the last week of September. In the last few days barring one or two exceptions, prices of both petrol and diesel have gone up on a daily basis. Diesel was priced at Rs 105.07 per litre while petrol stood at Rs 108.55 per litre Tuesday in the Odisha capital.