Indian Truckers End Strike

Indian truckers have called off their strike after eight days as the government agreed to consider their demands to cut levies on diesel fuel, an official of the protesting group said on Saturday. The All-India Motor Transport Congress, an organization of transporters that organized the strike, had demanded a cut in federal and state levies on diesel by bringing the fuel under the scope of the nationwide goods and services tax, Reuters reported. India’s Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari late on Friday said the government was sympathetic toward truckers’ concerns and had formed a committee to look into their demands. AIMTC’s Secretary-General Naveen Gupta confirmed the strike had ended, adding that the organization hoped the government will quickly address their issues. The strike, which began on July 20, had disrupted production and sales of vehicles in the country and affected deliveries for e-commerce firms such as Amazon.