Jeypore/Koraput/Sunabeda: After plying for few months, city bus services in Koraput, Jeypore and Sunabeda has stalled following cease work protest from local urban transport trust alleging the RTO of showing undue favours to private bus owners and giving them route permit and time table.
The bus services which began only last year in June came to an abrupt halt in January this year after the Jeypore-Koraput Sunabeda Urban Transport Trust (JKSUTT) alleged gross indifference from RTO who had allegedly preferred to give route permits and suitable time table to private buses rather than to city buses.
“RTO had given the route permits without maintaining frequencies so we had opposed the move and consequently stopped the buses. Former collector had asked us to run buses in Kotpad route since people were facing lots of problems so we resumed services in that route. But for other routes since we are yet to permits and owing to long distance we have so far stayed put with our protests,” JKSUTT Operator, Anil Kumar Ray told media persons.
When asked about the issue, Koraput RTO Pravat Chandra Pradhan said the standoff will be amicably solved through discussions as directed by Chief Secretary. “During last meeting it was discussed that city buses which run at higher speed should cooperate with private buses so as to prevent losses. Since there are 50 odd private buses running while there are only 20 city buses and we are getting more taxes from private buses so I asked the trust to cooperate but they called off the services,” Pradhan said.
“Besides since they are running from one stand to another but not sector or route wise problems arise,” he added.
The district collector had asked for a show-cause explanation from the RTO in connection with the matter but the latter is yet to submit the same.
During the last trust meeting we had instructed to resume the services. Out of all, six buses have started running on roads. The rest for some reasons are yet to resume service. I have called a trust meeting to fix the modalities and hope that the matter will be resolved soon. We cannot run administration based on compassion but rather we will try to take steps based on rules and regulation and RT act, Anupam Saha, Collector, Koraput said.