<p>The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) on Tuesday took out a “mock funeral” of its buses that were burnt during the garment workers’ protest in April. <br /><br /></p>.<p>This was part of the KSRTC’s two-day campaign ‘It’s My Bus’ to create awareness among people not to vandalise public property during protests. The burnt buses were displayed at Majestic and other major bus stations. <br /><br />After inaugurating the campaign at the Majestic bus station, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said the state-owned buses were becoming vulnerable to vandalism as they are easy targets of mobs. <br /><br />Vandalising public property is not the solution to the problems. Instead, the public should choose non-violent methods, he said.<br /><br />Rajender Kumar Kataria, KSRTC Managing Director, said it had become routine for mobs to damage government buses which were purchased from taxpayers’ money. <br /><br />“We lost Rs 10-15 crore due to damage to the buses. When I visited the Peenya depot soon after the protest, I decided to do something to prevent such damages in the future.” <br /><br />He said he hoped the initiative would become a talking point and help prevent future damages to public property. Artist Badal Nanjundaswamy painted an undamaged bus as part of the campaign. <br /> </p>
<p>The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) on Tuesday took out a “mock funeral” of its buses that were burnt during the garment workers’ protest in April. <br /><br /></p>.<p>This was part of the KSRTC’s two-day campaign ‘It’s My Bus’ to create awareness among people not to vandalise public property during protests. The burnt buses were displayed at Majestic and other major bus stations. <br /><br />After inaugurating the campaign at the Majestic bus station, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said the state-owned buses were becoming vulnerable to vandalism as they are easy targets of mobs. <br /><br />Vandalising public property is not the solution to the problems. Instead, the public should choose non-violent methods, he said.<br /><br />Rajender Kumar Kataria, KSRTC Managing Director, said it had become routine for mobs to damage government buses which were purchased from taxpayers’ money. <br /><br />“We lost Rs 10-15 crore due to damage to the buses. When I visited the Peenya depot soon after the protest, I decided to do something to prevent such damages in the future.” <br /><br />He said he hoped the initiative would become a talking point and help prevent future damages to public property. Artist Badal Nanjundaswamy painted an undamaged bus as part of the campaign. <br /> </p>
