LPG tanker drivers’ flash strike called off

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A flash strike by truck drivers at Indian Oil Corporation’s (IOC) bottling plant at Ambalamugal ended on Friday night after hectic parleys.

The strike started after one of the drivers was allegedly assaulted by an LPG distributor and his associates in Thrissur on Thursday.

None of the 75 trucks loaded LPG refills at the plant following the strike called by a union affiliated to the CITU. At least 30,000 cylinders are loaded from this plant everyday to be distributed in Ernakulam, Alappuzha, Idukki, Kottayam and Thrissur districts.

According to a CITU spokesman, the driver, one Prasad, was assaulted by the henchmen of Sastha Distributors in Thrissur on Thursday evening.

“The driver reached the godown of the distributor on Wednesday, but the empty cylinders were not loaded on the lorry after repeated requests by the driver even on Thursday," he alleged.

“When the driver asked the distributor to load the cylinders for a third time, he was attacked. He was admitted to the general hospital in Ernakulam and the police has registered a case,” the spokesman said.

The standoff between the drivers and IOC continued through the day, but by evening IOC officers came forward for talks.

IOC dealers to segregate outdated refills

In a bid to address rising incidents of LPG cylinder blasts in the city, the district supply office has directed all dealers of India Oil Corporation (IOC) to have facility in their godowns to segregate faulty and outdated refills.

The decision was taken after it was found that stringent checking at the IOC plant would slow down the bottling process and could result in backlog of refill supply.

“Segregation at the dealers’ godowns can save time, as the plant is not in a position to cut down the number of refills to be readied everyday in view of the high demand.

We have directed all dealers to ensure segregation,” said district supply officer, Radhamaniyamma.

Changing the black washer of the cylinder every time it is refilled would also be implemented.

Another direction to the IOC plant was to ensure complete removal of the air from the cylinder after every pressure test.

New cylinders would be subjected to pressure checking after 10 years and old ones every five years.