Karnataka - Bangalore   

Safety is a luxury in these buses

By Divya Sreedharan

BANGALORE, SEP. 12. An overnight journey turned into a nightmare for Divya Bheda. The 22-year-old student of media studies had expected nothing unusual when she boarded a private luxury bus to travel from the temple town of Chidambaram (Tamil Nadu) to Bangalore.

An accident near Hosur in the early hours of Sunday showed her how ill-equipped the luxury bus was. "There was no first aid box or emergency exit." She was not injured though.

Appalling facilities

"Some of my co-passengers had serious fractures and could not move. We were stuck inside. Finally, we climbed out through a window," Ms. Bheda recalled. "To make matters worse, there were ticks on the seats."

Having paid Rs. 300 each for the journey, she and the others were incensed at the appalling facilities.

"Even those with fractures had to get out through the window and they were screaming with pain. The conductor too was badly injured. As there was no first aid box, I used the anti-septic lotion I had with me," Ms. Bheda, whose parents live in Bannerghatta Road, told The Hindu .

Didn't private bus operators have to adhere to some safety standards especially when they charged such high rates, she asked. "If someone can indicate where the emergency exit is or where the first aid box is, it would help," she said.

Ms. Bheda said she had contacted the bus operator to complain.

"The personnel there laughed at me when I threatened to make it a big issue," she said.

There are many private bus operators connecting Bangalore to cities and towns as far apart as Thalassery (in Kerala) and Panaji (Goa) to Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) and Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh).

Bigger players like Sharma Transports, S.K. S. Travels, P. K. N. Travels and Kallada Travels have offices in and around Kalasipalayam.

Most offer Volvo A/C luxury and sleeper coaches at rates as high as Rs. 600 per head one way.

RTO responsible

When contacted, the Joint Commissioner, Transport Department, Mohammad Suleiman, said the responsibility of inspecting buses and monitoring safety standards lay with the Regional Transport Officers (RTOs).

And according to Shafi Ahmed, the Regional Transport Officer (Central), there are 100 to 150 private bus operators (inter-city/inter-State) registered in the city.

"When we issue fitness certificates, we ensure that they meet safety standards given under the Indian Motor Vehicles Act," he said.

In most buses, there would be a big rear window to double up as emergency exits.

"Even if there isn't, a big glass window will suffice. But there should be a hammer with which to break the glass," Mr. Ahmed added.

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