Goa commuters stranded as buses diverted to Karnataka for PM Modi rally

Commuters in Goa are facing hardships due to lack of public transport with most Kadamba Transport Corporation (KTC) buses reportedly off the road.

Goa's local daily Oheraldo reported that the KTC had sent dozens of its buses to neighbouring Karnataka -- a move that anguished several commuters in Goa who were left stranded at Margao KTC bus stand on Wednesday.

Nearly 70 buses were reportedly diverted to transport people to the venue of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s election rally at Ankola in the poll-bound state. As per the report, several people travelling on interstate routes were left stranded for hours at Margao and other bus stands in Goa, a state where a majority of people rely on buses for public transport.

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Speaking to the publication, a commuter said: "KTC has been complaining that they don’t have enough buses to provide a good public transport service in Goa. Despite being aware of this situation, the government decided to send buses to Karnataka for election campaign.”

Meanwhile, Opposition parties in Goa also slammed the BJP government in the state for sending buses to Karnataka and causing an inconvenience to the people in Goa.

However, KTC Chairman Ulhas Tuenkar has maintained that “except for a couple of issues”, the move to send buses to Karnataka did not cause any major hurdles.

“The number of buses was not more than 70. We sent the buses that were earlier assigned to school children,” he told the publication.

“Various BJP block committees of Karnataka requested for KTC buses and were sent to them after the hiring charges were paid. In fact, these buses have already returned to Goa after rendering its services,” he added. He also said that when there are big events in Goa, buses from Karnataka are hired.