ERODE: The Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) has started operating an additional bus service between Kongadai and Anthiyur, bringing relief to school and college students in the hilly villages. People say this will encourage more students to pursue higher education.
There are 15 villages in Bargur hills in Erode district, with population of around 5,000. TNSTC started operating buses between Anthiyur and Kongadai in 2018. But the bus did not cover most of the villages. Especially students found the timing inconvenient.
Due to this, the hill villagers demanded one more bus service at a convenient time for school and college students to travel, and had been demanding additional service. Heeding to their requests, TNSTC started the additional bus service on March 8.
VP Gunasekaran, coordinator of Tamil Nadu tribal people’s association, said, “This is our long- standing demand. The existing bus service did not connect many villages and was not suitable for school and college students. Our children had to walk for long distances to go to schools.
College students went to the college in Anthiyur in goods vehicles. The new service connects the missing villages. Apart from that, the bus is run on the right time for the convenience of school and college students. This will help increase the number of students going to schools and colleges from hill villages.”
Anthiyur MLA AG Venkatachalam said, “Students from hilly villages have to come to Anthiyur to study in the college. They faced difficulty due to non-availability of bus on time. I took up the issue with the attention of the Chief Minister MK Stalin and Ministers. Hence this additional bus service has been provided. The bus departs from Anthiyur at 6 am. It will reach Kongadai village and reach Anthiyur again at 9.30 am. School and college students can go to their educational institutions within this specified time. At 4.10 pm, the bus leaves Anthiyur.”
“At present around 40 students from Bargur hill villages are travelling to Government Arts College in Anthiyur through the bus. This will increase in the coming years.”
Officials of TNSTC of Erode said, “We will not get much revenue from additional bus operation. But the service is run for the convenience of students in the area.”