<p>More than 50 years after the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) started operations to provide affordable transport service to people in the state, nearly 5,000 villages in 17 districts remain poorly connected, thanks to the lobby by private bus operators.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The state transport undertaking has come a long way, especially after KSRTC was split into four corporations. Since then, the corporation is serving 17 districts, while the remaining ones connected by two corporations for the northeast and northwest. The BMTC’s role is limited to Bengaluru city.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The government has given the monopoly to KSRTC to operate in 7,326 of the total 20,792 villages in the 17 districts, identified in the 2011 census. Private operators are permitted to operate in 13,466 villages in the non-monopoly region, where the state operator has to get permission from the Transport department to introduce a service.</p>.<p class="bodytext">“Only seven villages are not connected in the monopolised region and all of them are small. In the non-monopolised region, we have 4,692 villages entirely depending on private buses and vehicles. We receive hundreds of petitions from the public seeking buses to these places, but we are helpless as running a bus involves taking a permission,” a senior KSRTC official said.</p>.<p class="CrossHead">Villagers walk kms</p>.<p class="bodytext">An official from Shivamogga said passengers have no say when it comes to private buses. “If a KSRTC bus cancels a trip, they can complain to the authorities, seeking a solution. But they can’t complain if a private bus doesn’t stick to the route or time. Some villagers walk several kilometres to access motor transport,” he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">In Shivamogga, KSRTC has the monopoly on only 12 of the 1,538 villages and private operators have entrenched themselves to ensure control. “Except the Bhadravati, Harihar and Sorab route main roads, we just don’t have buses to other places even though people have been demanding,” he said.</p>.<p class="CrossHead">Route permits</p>.<p class="bodytext">Responding to a query, Transport Minister D C Thammanna said it was tough for KSRTC to get route permits on non-monopolised routes. “Private bus operators have a clout with district transport authorities, which gives route permits. They obtain permission by showing a poorly connected village, but start operating on other routes illegally. Nobody has checked this over the years, leading to a number of violations. I will look into the matter,” he said.</p>
<p>More than 50 years after the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) started operations to provide affordable transport service to people in the state, nearly 5,000 villages in 17 districts remain poorly connected, thanks to the lobby by private bus operators.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The state transport undertaking has come a long way, especially after KSRTC was split into four corporations. Since then, the corporation is serving 17 districts, while the remaining ones connected by two corporations for the northeast and northwest. The BMTC’s role is limited to Bengaluru city.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The government has given the monopoly to KSRTC to operate in 7,326 of the total 20,792 villages in the 17 districts, identified in the 2011 census. Private operators are permitted to operate in 13,466 villages in the non-monopoly region, where the state operator has to get permission from the Transport department to introduce a service.</p>.<p class="bodytext">“Only seven villages are not connected in the monopolised region and all of them are small. In the non-monopolised region, we have 4,692 villages entirely depending on private buses and vehicles. We receive hundreds of petitions from the public seeking buses to these places, but we are helpless as running a bus involves taking a permission,” a senior KSRTC official said.</p>.<p class="CrossHead">Villagers walk kms</p>.<p class="bodytext">An official from Shivamogga said passengers have no say when it comes to private buses. “If a KSRTC bus cancels a trip, they can complain to the authorities, seeking a solution. But they can’t complain if a private bus doesn’t stick to the route or time. Some villagers walk several kilometres to access motor transport,” he said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">In Shivamogga, KSRTC has the monopoly on only 12 of the 1,538 villages and private operators have entrenched themselves to ensure control. “Except the Bhadravati, Harihar and Sorab route main roads, we just don’t have buses to other places even though people have been demanding,” he said.</p>.<p class="CrossHead">Route permits</p>.<p class="bodytext">Responding to a query, Transport Minister D C Thammanna said it was tough for KSRTC to get route permits on non-monopolised routes. “Private bus operators have a clout with district transport authorities, which gives route permits. They obtain permission by showing a poorly connected village, but start operating on other routes illegally. Nobody has checked this over the years, leading to a number of violations. I will look into the matter,” he said.</p>
