5 days ago
Kerala Private Bus Operators Threaten Indefinite Strike Over Priyadarshini Scheme
Private bus owners in Kerala say a new free-travel plan is hurting their businesses.
The Priyadarshini scheme lets women ride ordinary buses run by the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation for free.
The government created an expert committee to study the private operators’ problems.
The committee suggested treating private bus services as an industry.
It also suggested allowing buses to operate for 25 years instead of 22.
The operators say these ideas do not solve their main problems.
They want help such as diesel subsidies, higher student fares, and free-travel ticket support.
Their association will decide whether to begin an indefinite strike across the state.
Private bus operators in Kerala threatened an indefinite statewide strike over financial losses linked to the Priyadarshini scheme.
The scheme allows women to travel free on ordinary-category Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses.
An expert committee recommended recognizing private bus services as an industry and extending their operational life from 22 to 25 years.
Operators said the committee did not address key demands, including a private-bus zero-ticket system for women and diesel subsidies.
The All Kerala Bus Operators Association will decide on halting services at a state committee meeting in Palakkad on September 8.
- Who
- Private bus operators, represented by the All Kerala Bus Operators Association, and the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation are involved.
- What
- Private bus operators threatened an indefinite strike, saying the Priyadarshini scheme has worsened their financial difficulties.
- Where
- The proposed strike would affect services across Kerala, with the decision meeting in Palakkad.
- When
- The strike decision is scheduled for a state committee meeting on September 8; the report was dated September 6.
- Why
- Operators say the expert committee’s recommendations do not address their demands, including diesel subsidies, higher student fares, and support for women’s free travel.
Expert Committee Recommendations
Private Bus Operators’ Demands
Addressing the sector’s decline
Expert Committee Recommendations
The expert committee recommended declaring private bus services an industry and extending bus operating life to 25 years.
Private Bus Operators’ Demands
Operators said these recommendations were inadequate and did not address their major concerns.
Impact of free travel for women
Expert Committee Recommendations
The Priyadarshini scheme provides free travel for women on ordinary-category Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses.
Private Bus Operators’ Demands
Private operators said the scheme was damaging their finances and sought a zero-ticketing system for women passengers on private buses.
Financial relief
Expert Committee Recommendations
The committee’s reported recommendations did not include the relief measures demanded by operators.
Private Bus Operators’ Demands
Operators demanded diesel subsidies, higher student fares, and an increase in the minimum ticket price from Rs 10 to Rs 15.
Key facts
- Scheme
- The Priyadarshini scheme allows women to travel free on ordinary-category Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses.
- Committee recommendations
- The expert committee recommended recognizing private bus services as an industry.
- Operational life
- The committee recommended extending private buses’ operational life from 22 to 25 years.
- Operators’ demands
- The operators called for a zero-ticketing system for women, a diesel subsidy, and increased student fares.
- Minimum ticket demand
- The All Kerala Bus Operators Association called for raising the minimum ticket price from Rs 10 to Rs 15.
- Decision date
- The association’s state committee was scheduled to decide on stopping services on September 8.
Quotes
T Gopinathan
General secretary of the All Kerala Bus Operators Association
“The recommendations in the expert committee report, which studied the situation following the implementation of the Priyadarshini scheme, are inadequate for private bus owners to sustain their business. We see no recommendations from the commission regarding our demand.”
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Sources
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