Passengers take drunk ‘Mo Bus’ driver to task in Odisha
ROURKELA: Passengers caught the driver of a ‘Mo Bus’ driving the public transport vehicle in an inebriated state and handed him over to Kuanrmunda police in Sundargarh’s Birmitrapur on Monday night. The non-AC Mo Bus bearing registration number OD-14AB-8673 was plying on route-106 between Rourkela and Birmitrapur town. The vehicle carrying over two dozens of passengers, was on its last trip of the day to Birmitrapur when the incident took place.
Sources said some of the passengers found the driver driving the bus erratically and dangerously, but none of them initially dared to confront him. One passenger, who boarded the bus at Panposh, said the driver was unable to control the vehicle while negotiating the busy NH-143. Fearing for their lives, passengers finally mustered courage and forced the driver to take the bus to Kuanrmunda police outpost. Both the driver and the bus were handed over to police at around 9 pm.
Late in the night, alternate arrangements were made and the passengers were taken to their destinations. Many passengers complained that though their lives were in the hand of the driver, he had no sense of responsibility. Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) of Birmitrapur Sushant Das confirmed the incident and said the drunk driver was released after arrival of his supervisor. As per provisions of the law, a police report would be submitted to court and appropriate recommendation made for cancellation of the driver’s licence.
Ahead of the Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023, the Mo Bus service of Capital Region Urban Transport (CRUT) was launched in Rourkela in January with around 25 buses. Subsequently, the number of buses from Rourkela to periphery areas was increased. Regional transport officer (RTO), Rourkela Bibha Samantasinghray said around 100 buses of CRUT under Mo Bus service have been registered but the exact number of vehicles that are operating is not known.