Various trade unions of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) have written to the transport minister seeking intervention against the management’s move to divert the Ernakulam-Bangalore superdeluxe bus to Piravom.
According to top officials with the management, the order to divert the bus to Piravom will be issued soon. Hibi Eden MLA said that he would notify the matter immediately to the minister concerned. “It has been brought to my notice that the superdeluxe bus is being diverted in the interests of Civil Supplies Minister Anoop Jacob. Efforts to quash the move will be taken, as one cannot run such buses, especially the inter-state ones, as per the interests of a minister,” Eden told ‘Express’.
According to A V Francis, of the Kerala State Transport Workers Union (KSRWU), the move to divert the bus will negatively impact KSRTC, since the Piravom route would not be economically viable for KSRTC.
Even the officials at the depot are against the move.
Currently, the Ernakulam depot operates only three long-distance buses to Bangalore, against Karnataka State Transport Corporations’ 12 buses. The unions allege that in the past when the Kottayam-Bangalore superdeluxe bus was diverted through Piravom, the patronage of passengers had come down.
The Velankani-Ernakulam superfast, which was diverted through Piravom, was later rerouted through the MC road due to lack of feasibility.
Union members have also demanded the management to replace long-distance buses with ‘Volvo-type’ buses akin to the Karnataka and Tamil Nadu interstate buses.
All long-distance buses have crossed four years of their five-year life span and it is time that the management took steps to replace the current buses with better-quality ones, unions have stated. A Velankani-Vellarpadom superdeluxe bus is to begin operations from Ernakulam.
“Since both places are pilgrim spots, the patronage will be huge and the service a great success. We have written to the minister regarding this,” Francis said.
