The Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) has initiated action against 65 tourist buses (contract carriages) in the Ernakulam zone and 38 buses in the Kozhikode zone for illegal alterations to interiors and exteriors.
A compounding fine of ₹87,000 was collected from erring buses in the Ernakulam zone, which covers Ernakulam, Kottayam, and Idukki, while ₹65,000 was collected from the Kozhikode zone.
The action was taken on a Kerala High Court order banning use of stickers, flashy lights, and high-decibel sound systems in buses.
The MVD embarked on a three-day enforcement drive beginning Thursday in the wake of tourist buses performing stunts at schools at Kottarakkara and Anchal earlier this week, prior to students embarking on a picnic in them. In one such incident, buses did stunts on the playground, while students watched at close quarters.
With the news and videos creating a storm on social media, Transport Commissioner R. Sreelekha ordered MVD personnel to conduct a three-day drive against buses with illegal alterations and provocative stickers and messages on the body, distracting the attention of road users. Action will also be taken against buses with their seats illegally altered.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a Deputy Transport Commissioner said bus operators often did such illegal retrofits to market tour companies and to woo students.
“The situation is such that most youth prefer buses with flashy lights and body graphics and high-decibel sound systems. Some also prefer buses in which liquor can be freely consumed. Well-maintained buses which adhere to rules are often shunned by organisers of picnics,” he added.
With the MVD launching the drive, members of the public and well-meaning bus operators have started passing information and photographs of buses with illegal alterations.
In extreme cases, fitness certificates of such buses can be cancelled. Such violations by stage-carriage buses were reigned in after the MVD insisted on different body colours, depending on their routes, he said.
