Private bus employees and students have never been the best of friends. A recent incident reported from Angamaly where a conductor was booked for pushing a Class VIII girl off a bus has drawn attention to the troubled relation between the two. Fortunately, the girl suffered only minor injuries and was spared being run over by the bus.
But the risk of painting the entire community of private bus workers with the same brush came to light a few days ago with an incident reported, ironically, from the same place. A private bus set a model for other bus workers by waiting in front of a school till classes got over so the students could reach home on time. The gesture won a lot of hearts and the bus crew was honoured by the police.
The deadline ‘connection’
It would seem that there’s nothing in common in the manner of functioning of some information officers in government offices and the Public Works Department entrusted with road maintenance. But going by the way both parties interpret deadlines, there could be a ‘connection’.
The Right to Information Act stipulates mandatory response to a petition within 30 days and not by the 30th day as interpreted by some information officers. PWD officials faced with a September 5 deadline for repairing roads seem to have adopted similar delaying tactics going by the pace of works.
Another trick of information officers is to give scanty information on a petition, winning another 30 days in the process. It remains to be seen whether something of the kind would be seen in case of the patchwork done by way of road restoration. Shoddy work would mean another contract, which would come with another deadline.
No space for parking
Of late, officials of the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) are busy chasing violators of parking norms.
The problem of unauthorised parking has accentuated with the city getting into a shopping spree ahead of Onam.
A drive along HMT Road at Kalamassery recently saw several inter-State container lorries being booked for illegal parking.
The situation has turned so grim that the department has approached HMT and FACT authorities, enquiring whether a part of their vacant plots along HMT and Container Terminal roads could be utilised for parking.
