Srinagar: Life was adversely affected in the Kashmir Valley on Monday as public transport operators suspended services against a hike in taxes on passenger vehicles. Taxis, buses, mini buses and even three-wheelers went off the roads across the valley causing inconvenience to commuters in urban and rural areas. Crowds of office-goers, students and others were stranded in Srinagar and elsewhere as no public transport was available to ferry them. Attendance in government offices, banks, post offices and businesses was thin. Representatives of transport operators were seen enforcing the strike here and elsewhere by stopping the few vehicles on the roads.
Taxi drivers off-loaded their passengers and tourists after being stopped by strikers. The strike was called against the Jammu and Kashmir government’s decision to increase taxes on passenger vehicles. Representatives of transport operators had said in Jammu on Sunday that they had deferred the 72-hour strike beginning on Monday as they were meeting Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to sort out the issue. It was because of this scheduled meeting that transport operators in Jammu continued their services on Monday.
