The operators behaved arrogantly and are not at all concerned about those who died in the accident, say officials
Thirty-six private tourist buses were seized by the Transport Department officials for violating norms, on Tuesday.
Ninety-one cases have been booked against operators for plying buses in violation of rules.
The vehicles were seized as part of the crackdown launched by the department after Sree Kaleswari bus met with an accident near Sholapur leaving 30 people dead and 17 injured. Out of 36 buses, 18 belong to Sree Kaleswari Tours and Travels Limited.
Special teams carried out inspections at the offices of private tours and travels in Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Vijayawada, Guntur, Visakhapatnam, Tirupati and Anantapur and confiscated vehicles.
These vehicles were later shifted to nearby offices of Regional Transport Authority (RTA). Apart from violating permit conditions, the operators had arranged for additional seats thereby evading taxes.
The owners were also not maintaining the passengers’ list, officials said.
They explained that owners were allowing some passengers to carry commercial goods in buses. “We will continue the raids till operators comply with norms,” warned Additional Transport Commissioner P. Srinivas. According to officials, the owners came to the Transport Department’s head-office at Khairatabad and demanded that ongoing crackdown be stopped.
“The operators behaved in an arrogant manner. They were least bothered about those who had died in the road accident. They were only demanding that we stop the raids,” officials rued.
