Tamil Nadu trucks transporting sand, soil, M-sand and crushed stone are set to observe a token strike from November 1, according to Yuvaraj, president of the Tamil Nadu State Sand Truck Owners’ Associations Federation. The federation says conflicting enforcement over vehicle loads has left truck owners and drivers facing penalties and police cases.
Yuvaraj said most crusher owners were compelling truck operators to accept loads above the permitted limit before releasing construction materials. When overloaded vehicles are checked at enforcement points, however, police impose fines and cases are registered against the owners and drivers, he said.
The dispute concerns the movement of several materials used by the construction sector, including sand, soil, manufactured sand and crushed stone. The federation said the Department of Geology and Mining has prescribed limits on the quantity of these materials that can be supplied to each truck from quarries.
According to Yuvaraj, some crusher owners are refusing to comply with those limits and are continuing to insist on higher loads. This places truck operators and drivers in a difficult position, as accepting the load can expose them to enforcement action while refusing it may prevent them from receiving a consignment, he said.
The stated dispute is therefore not only about truck operations but also about how quarry-level loading practices are being aligned with mineral administration rules and road enforcement. The federation has already submitted a representation to the Transport Department, according to its president.
The planned action is intended to draw the government’s attention to the issue. Trucks carrying the affected materials will participate in the token strike from November 1, Yuvaraj said. The report does not specify the number of trucks involved, the duration of the strike or whether the government has announced a response.
Any interruption to the movement of sand, M-sand and aggregates could affect the construction supply chain, but the scale of that impact will depend on participation by operators and the duration of the stoppage. The immediate administrative issue identified by the federation is the enforcement gap between the load limits imposed by the mining authorities and the quantities allegedly demanded by crusher operators.
The next stated step is the start of the federation’s token strike on November 1, while the truck owners’ representation to the Transport Department remains the reported channel for seeking government intervention.
