<p>Bengaluru: Private bus operators in Bengaluru have requested the Transport department for an extension of the February 28 deadline for compliance of safety measures for both regular and the sleeper buses. </p>.<p>About two weeks ago, the Transport department, had set the deadline in light of a series of fatal accidents, involving private sleeper buses. The directive called for the removal of the partition door behind the driver in all sleeper buses, installation of fire extinguishers of at least 10 kg in all sleeper buses, and display of a design layout drawing clearly indicating emergency exists, the location of fire extinguishers and roof hatches, in a place easily visible and readable to passengers in all buses, among other safety measures. </p>.<p><strong>Workshops busy</strong></p>.<p>However, the tight deadline has led to long queues at bodybuilding workshops in the city, bus operators told <em>DH</em>. “One of the things pointed out in the directive is the removal of luggage carriers. This is something that is taking time, as most of the older buses have it as it was allowed back to them. Now that all operators are trying to remove them, the workshops are all backed up. They are only accepting two buses from each operator per day,” said Ayush Jain, proprietor, Sugama Tourists.</p>.<p>Modification of sleeper buses remained the trickiest part, shared operators. </p>.<p>Another matter of concern remains the low supply of Fire Detection and Suppression System (FDSS). Most bus operators DH spoke to shared concerns about the delayed supply of FDSS. “It’s been 48 days since we placed an order for the FDSS, but we’ve not yet received the complete order. Since there are only a few certified FDSS suppliers in India, they are unable to match the demand as orders are flowing in from across the country. Our supplier told us that they have 1,800 orders to fulfil, which was causing the delay,” said Balakrishna Rai, manager (operations), SRS Travels. </p>.February 28 deadline for Karnatak-registered buses to meet safety measures.<p><strong>Extension of deadline </strong></p>.<p>An association of private bus owners have written to Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy and the transport department, asking for an extension of time to ensure all buses are fitted with the FDSS before inspections begin. “The FDSS manufacturers have written to us, asking for three month’s time to meet all the orders in the state, as orders have been placed for over 1,000 buses. We have presented the same letters to the Minister and requested an extension. Apart from this, we have also written to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) about how the removal of the partition door behind the driver would be impractical as it would hinder the air conditioning onboard,” elaborated Rajesh Venkat, owner of Rajesh Transports, and secretary of Karnataka Bus Operators Association. </p>.<p>The Transport Department will be meeting on Monday to decide whether a time period extension would be feasible, said Yogeesh A M, Commissioner for Transport and Road Safety.</p>.<p><strong>Quote - </strong></p>.<p>Rajesh Venkat<br>secy Karnataka Bus Operators Association</p>.<p>“The FDSS manufacturers have written to us asking for three month’s time to meet all the orders in the state as orders have been placed for over 1000 buses. We have presented the same letters to the Minister and requested an extension. Apart from this we have also written to the MoRTH about how the removal of the partition door behind the driver would be impractical as it would hinder the air conditioning onboard.</p>
<p>Bengaluru: Private bus operators in Bengaluru have requested the Transport department for an extension of the February 28 deadline for compliance of safety measures for both regular and the sleeper buses. </p>.<p>About two weeks ago, the Transport department, had set the deadline in light of a series of fatal accidents, involving private sleeper buses. The directive called for the removal of the partition door behind the driver in all sleeper buses, installation of fire extinguishers of at least 10 kg in all sleeper buses, and display of a design layout drawing clearly indicating emergency exists, the location of fire extinguishers and roof hatches, in a place easily visible and readable to passengers in all buses, among other safety measures. </p>.<p><strong>Workshops busy</strong></p>.<p>However, the tight deadline has led to long queues at bodybuilding workshops in the city, bus operators told <em>DH</em>. “One of the things pointed out in the directive is the removal of luggage carriers. This is something that is taking time, as most of the older buses have it as it was allowed back to them. Now that all operators are trying to remove them, the workshops are all backed up. They are only accepting two buses from each operator per day,” said Ayush Jain, proprietor, Sugama Tourists.</p>.<p>Modification of sleeper buses remained the trickiest part, shared operators. </p>.<p>Another matter of concern remains the low supply of Fire Detection and Suppression System (FDSS). Most bus operators DH spoke to shared concerns about the delayed supply of FDSS. “It’s been 48 days since we placed an order for the FDSS, but we’ve not yet received the complete order. Since there are only a few certified FDSS suppliers in India, they are unable to match the demand as orders are flowing in from across the country. Our supplier told us that they have 1,800 orders to fulfil, which was causing the delay,” said Balakrishna Rai, manager (operations), SRS Travels. </p>.February 28 deadline for Karnatak-registered buses to meet safety measures.<p><strong>Extension of deadline </strong></p>.<p>An association of private bus owners have written to Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy and the transport department, asking for an extension of time to ensure all buses are fitted with the FDSS before inspections begin. “The FDSS manufacturers have written to us, asking for three month’s time to meet all the orders in the state, as orders have been placed for over 1,000 buses. We have presented the same letters to the Minister and requested an extension. Apart from this, we have also written to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) about how the removal of the partition door behind the driver would be impractical as it would hinder the air conditioning onboard,” elaborated Rajesh Venkat, owner of Rajesh Transports, and secretary of Karnataka Bus Operators Association. </p>.<p>The Transport Department will be meeting on Monday to decide whether a time period extension would be feasible, said Yogeesh A M, Commissioner for Transport and Road Safety.</p>.<p><strong>Quote - </strong></p>.<p>Rajesh Venkat<br>secy Karnataka Bus Operators Association</p>.<p>“The FDSS manufacturers have written to us asking for three month’s time to meet all the orders in the state as orders have been placed for over 1000 buses. We have presented the same letters to the Minister and requested an extension. Apart from this we have also written to the MoRTH about how the removal of the partition door behind the driver would be impractical as it would hinder the air conditioning onboard.</p>