The residents of Ira village in Bantwal taluk on Monday stopped a private bus for nearly two hours, alleging that it was being used to obstruct the service of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation.
Following the demand of the villagers, the KSRTC had started operating the B.C. Road – Mangalore bus through the village since January. The permit, which lapsed on June 30, has been renewed.
The KSRTC stopped the service for some time following low revenue collection as the private bus by Mamata Travels was operating busses in such a way that its timings clashed with timings of the KSRTC bus. Following a representation by the villagers, the officers from KSRTC decided to resume the service from July 20.
The Bantwal Rural police said the villagers got to know from KSRTC bus drivers that the Mamata Travels continued to operate its buses. The private bus used to ply on the route 15 minutes ahead of the schedule of the KSRTC bus and thereby ensured that there was no patronage for the public transport service, the police said.
On Monday, the villagers stopped the Mamata Travels bus at the village for nearly two hours in the morning demanding that its operator should not indulge such practice in future. The villagers allowed the private bus to move following intervention of the Bantwal police.
