PERAMBALUR: Residents of five villages, including school and college students, in the district complain about the lack of adequate bus facilities. The villages of Bommanapadi, Chettikulam, Mavilangai, Thotiyapatti and Thenur are located in Alathur block of Perambalur district.
Besides people travelling for work, hundreds of students from these villages travel to schools and colleges in Perambalur and Puthanampatti in Tiruchy district bordering Perambalur. But there is only one government bus connecting Perambalur to Thenur via Chettikulam, and it plies twice, in the morning and evening. There are no other buses to Puthanampatti.
Hence, footfall on the lone bus is naturally overcrowded, with many passengers having to travel on the footboard. Despite raising the issue at the Perambalur bus depot, no action has been taken. R Vishal from Chettikulam, a third-year BCA student at a government college in Puthanampatti said, "Twenty students, including me, from five villages are studying at this college.
For two years, we travelled to college on two-wheelers since the bus facilities were scarce. With the college offering bus facilities, we have been travelling by bus for the past six months. But on days when classes end in the afternoon, there is no bus for us to reach home. So a bus facility should be provided from Perambalur to Puthanampatti." V Kaliyamoorthy of Thenur said,
"We have to travel to Puthanampatti for essential needs, including for matters medical and work-related. Due to a lack of bus facility, we have to walk or take a two-wheeler. Even for an emergency, there are no proper transport facilities here, not even an autorickshaw." S Sekar of Mavilangai, who travels to Perambalur often, said,
"If we miss this bus, we have no other option but to cover the distance on foot or on a two-wheeler. This is not always possible." When contacted, an official from Perambalur bus depot told TNIE, "Due to a lack of drivers and conductors, we cannot provide bus facility on the new route. However, I will look into the issue."