Private bus owners accuse KSRTC of running buses without permits

Mohammad Habibulla Khan, Kodagu Regional Transport Officer, on Monday asked the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) officials in Madikeri not to ply the KSRTC buses in the district without valid permits.

He was presiding over the ‘Sarige Adalat’ (Transport Adalat) meeting. His appeal came in the wake of complaints lodged by the private bus owners in Kodagu that many KSRTC buses plied without valid permits. The private bus owners had alleged that KSRTC buses were running without permits for a long time, Mr. Khan said.

Lachme Gowda, depot manager, KSRTC, said the KSRTC buses were being run in certain locations in the district following demands by the commuters. At no point, the KSRTC was out to compete with the private bus owners. The issue would be brought to the notice of the Deputy Commissioner and sorted out, he said. Mr. Khan said KSRTC buses could not be operated without licence and the authorities ought to follow the court orders.

Mr. Khan said he had slapped 40 cases on KSRTC buses that were plying without licence in the last three years in Kodagu. It meant that the corporation should follow the transport rules. The motto of both KSRTC and private buses should be to provide service to commuters rather than competing with one another.

Hosur Ramesh Joyappa, president of the Kodagu Private Bus Owners’ Association, said the association had been complaining about KSRTC buses being operated in the district without permits in the last three years. Let the RTO take up a survey of the routes in the district, he demanded. Sarvajanika Hitarakshana Samiti president Katti Mandaiah said the KSRTC must stop trying to dominate the private routes.

Buses cannot be operated without licence: RTO

‘40 cases slapped for plying buses without licence in the last three years’.

source: http://www.TheHindu.com / Home> News> National> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Mysore, February 05th, 2013