Private bus services to Bengaluru hit as Kerala toughens stand on vehicle tax

The Kerala RTC also decided to use the available permit to operate maximum buses though it has decided to discontinue the Scania buses on wet lease.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Inter-state travellers had a tough time as some of the bus operators halted services in protest against the state government’s direction to change registration to Kerala or pay state tax extra from November 1. Around 100 private buses are operating inter-state services from Kerala. The busiest Ernakulam-Bengaluru route is the worst affected. A majority of the inter-state buses are registered in states that have tax rates lower than Kerala. They have not been running for the past three days. As a result, passengers returning to Bengaluru on November 1 after an extended holiday suffered.

“Most of the bus services have been affected because we have challenged the state government order in the High Court. Only 25 buses conducted services and most of them are registered in Kerala,” said Bus and Car Operators Confederation of India (BOCI) state chairman Riyas A J.

He said some of the inter-state bus operators decided to pay the quarterly tax as they could not afford to lose business. The court posted BOCI’s petition on November 7. Both Karnataka and Kerala state road transport corporations operated more buses on Wednesday to meet the passenger demand.

“We operated 20 buses on Tuesday when people were returning after holidays. Though we expected a lower number of passengers on other weekdays, all our buses operated with full capacity,” said a Karnataka RTC officer. The Kerala RTC also decided to use the available permit to operate maximum buses though it has decided to discontinue the Scania buses on wet lease.

Contract Carriage Operators Association (CCOA) general secretary S Prasanthan said buses from Thiruvananthapuram to Bengaluru operated from Karakkamandapam, which borders Tamil Nadu.
Kerala decided to follow Tamil Nadu in demanding inter-state bus operators to shift the registration to Kerala or pay extra tax in Kerala for allowing them to operate services from November 1.
Inter-state bus operators complained that the new rules made them pay taxes in both Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

The bus operators said parliament passed the All India Tourist Vehicles (Authorisation or Permit) Rule 2021 to avoid multiple taxation and ensure smooth movement of inter-state passenger services similar to that of inter-state good services. BOCI has challenged the Tamil Nadu government’s order and a High Court division bench is considering the case on November 8.