Frequent attacks by miscreants, allegedly hired by private bus operators, on the low-floor buses operated by the Kerala Urban Road Transport Corporation (KURTC) have affected the low-floor services from Kozhikode to various destinations in the past two months.
The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) had to spend around Rs.1 lakh alone on repairs. The revenue loss from the cancellation of trips was even more.
The KURTC, a subsidiary of the KSRTC, used to get a daily collection of around Rs.3 lakh from the 18 low-floor buses, but this has come down, a senior official said. The miscreants are yet to be traced. The officer also pointed out that the KSRTC had to repair its damaged vehicles in its Ernakulam workshop. “The fuel cost to cover such a long distance without passengers is an additional burden and wastage of money,” he said.
KSRTC services from Kozhikode to Nedumbassery were mostly targeted by the attackers as private tourist bus operators reportedly faced tough competition on the route. Many a time, the five buses operated on the route were full because of the comfortable timing and facilities.
The KSRTC management had even handed over the Closed Circuit Television Camera visuals from various spots to the police to identify the miscreants who vandalised the vehicles.
“The Feroke police had examined some of the visuals, but there was lack of clarity. We believe that only stern legal action will prevent such attacks in the future,” they said.
