BHUBANESWAR: The Mo Bus service continues to be in the news for all the wrong reasons including cases of loot, misbehaviour by staff, rash driving and random parking. In the latest incident on Monday, a passenger was robbed of Rs 20,000 from inside a Mo Bus at Cuttack.
The passenger Debendra Sahu was travelling from Netaji Bus Terminal to Purighat when he was pick-pocketed. After coming to know of the matter, Sahu filed a complaint with the Badambadi police.
This, however, is not the only incident of loot. A number of such cases have also been reported earlier. Earlier in March, a passenger had complained that he was robbed of Rs 50,000 while travelling in a Mo Bus on the Jagatpur-Baramunda route.
Similarly, some miscreants had allegedly looted six mobile phones from passengers in January. The Commissionerate Police in December last year had also arrested seven members of a gang involved in loot in Mo Buses and had recovered Rs 57,000 from them.
The service has reportedly deteriorated to such an extent that the Capital Region Urban Transport (CRUT), which manages the service, is flooded with a barrage of complaints. However, things are yet to improve. The incidents raise questions about the CRUT officials’ claims about CCTV surveillance in all buses under the fleet. Apart from loot, citizens and commuters have also flagged the issue of rash driving by the Mo Bus captains (drivers).
The speed of the buses even in internal roads and reckless driving have become a major cause of concern. Two weeks back, a Mo Bus had hit a car near Patrapada. Fortunately, no one was hurt in the accident. Meanwhile, similar incidents have also been reported in the past from many parts of the city including Rasulgarh. The random parking of the buses at places other than the designated bus shelters is another issue.
While CRUT authorities could not be reached, one of the officials said they are taking up the incidents of loot in the buses with police officials. The official said CRUT is also counselling the bus captains (drivers) and guides (conductors) to check rash driving and better communication with the passengers.