Indian transport workers at the Phulbari land port in Siliguri, located opposite Bangladesh’s Banglabandha land port in Panchagarh, blocked Bhutanese trucks carrying stones to Bangladesh on Monday.
The Indian workers claimed that for the past three months, their trucks have not been able to transport stones to Bangladesh, as Bangladeshi importers are purchasing exclusively from Bhutan.
According to The Telegraph India, the blockade caused a long queue of Bhutanese trucks near the border.
The situation eased in the afternoon after a meeting between the protesters and former Siliguri Mayor Gautam Deb, who assured them of discussions with higher authorities.
The blockade was temporarily lifted. Further talks between transport workers and the Jalpaiguri District Magistrate are scheduled for Tuesday.
Shubhankar Naskar, former secretary of the Phulbari Truck Owners` Welfare Association, said the recent strain in India-Bangladesh bilateral relations has led Bangladeshi importers to avoid using Indian transporters.
As a result, over 1,500 truck owners from Phulbari are facing significant losses. Naskar warned that if Indian trucks are not allowed to transport stones to Bangladesh, they will prevent all Bhutanese trucks from crossing the Phulbari border.
The blockade was supported by members of the Phulbari Truck Drivers` Association, Phulbari Exporters` Association, and Phulbari C&F Association, with about 150 people joining the sit-in protest from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM on Monday.
The former mayor personally contacted the protesters and urged the Jalpaiguri District Magistrate to look into the matter.
The protesters were promised a solution within three days. If unresolved, they plan to resume their protests.
Reportedly, about 250 Bhutanese trucks carrying around 30 tons of stone each cross Phulbari daily into Bangladesh.
