Thiruvananthapuram: Even though the Motor Vehicle Department had amended Kerala Motor Vehicle Rules to make shutters mandatory for the front and rear doors of buses, majority of vehicles especially the private buses continue to flout these norms blatantly. There were clear directions that officials of motor vehicles department including deputy commissioners, RTOs and Joint RTOs should lead inspections to ensure that doors are kept while busses are running.
But there are no regular checks happening in the city where about more than 100 private buses operate regularly. All these buses are fitted with doors. As per the law private buses should have front and rear doors though there is no clarity on the type of doors to be fitted. Both pneumatic doors and doors that open outwards are fitted in buses. In the wake of increasing accidents, the MVD had made shutters mandatory from July last year. But the officials are only checking whether the doors are functional or not and no action is being taken against the violators.
“We have not got any complaints yet. Normally MVD squads check the safety aspects. So far we have not received any compliant regarding violation of the door norms. Fines up to '1000 can be imposed on those violating safety norms and for dangerous driving as per section 184 of MV Act,” said Muraleekrishnan, RTO
The private bus operators point out practical difficulties in following the norms laid down under the MV Act. The normal doors, particularly those which open outwards, often have problems with door hinges. “While hinges can be repaired at local workshops, the problem is with pneumatic doors. There are no workshops in city to repair these doors. Buses have to be taken to Vadasserikonam, Varkala for repair work,” said Ramamoorthy , Kerala Bus Private Transport Association(KBTA) district president.
