Bengaluru: RTO launches drive against private buses, bus operators protest

Bengaluru: The RTO conducted a drive against private buses in and around Mysore Road and seized over 100 vehicles for violation of timings assigned to them by the RTO. The situation became chaotic as the drivers protested against the seizure at Summanahalli. They claimed that the seizure by the RTO is illegal.

Mr Narendra Holkar Joint Commissioner for Transport, Bengaluru, Urban and Rural, said, “Although these private buses have permission, we found violation in timings. The RTO assigns specific timings to these buses so that the movement of other buses like BMTC and KSRTC is not hampered. If a particular bus has been given a time of 7 am, he is supposed to reach the spot at that time. They try to come at peak hours between 8 and 10 am so that they can get more passengers.”

The drive saw heated arguments between drivers and officials. A driver, Manjunath, said, “The drive is illegal. How can they seize vehicles when we have documents? They are manhandling people and that is not right.” Another driver said, “They can slap fines, but why seize the vehicles?”