The private bus industry in the State is in the doldrums with the number of buses on the road coming down from 34,000 in 2011 to 12,500 by September this year following the sharp increase in the price of high speed diesel (HSD), tyre and spare parts, and the rise in motor vehicle tax, insurance, and wage bills.
More private bus operators plan to surrender bus permits and submit Form G that allows them to retain the permit without paying the quarterly tax of ₹30,000 to ₹35,000.
“The private bus industry is in dire straits with the price of HSD touching ₹80. It is not viable to run the services with the minimum fare of ₹8, 12.5% concession to students, and a host of freebies to others. We have time till September 30 to submit Form G and a decision whether to submit it en masse will be taken soon,” Lawrence Babu, general secretary, Kerala State Private Bus Operators Federation, told The Hindu .
That the Regional Transport Authority (RTA), Kollam, which meets on September 25 is taking up the surrender of 14 bus permits as a listed agenda shows the crisis faced by the industry. In Vadakara, Mr. Babu said, 12 buses disappeared from roads in two weeks.
Hardship to commuters
The development will put passengers to hardship as the State-owned Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) may not be able to cater to the needs of the State.
Bus fare was previously revised with effect from March this year when the price of HSD was ₹64 a litre. The HSD price has gone up to ₹80 now and bus operators who fill 80 litres of HSD daily have to find an additional ₹1,280 as fuel cost. Along with this, the increase in the price of tyres, lubricants, insurance, motor vehicle tax and wage bills has put the operators in a crisis.
The hike in quarterly motor vehicle tax of new stage carriers to ₹35,000 and high cost for introducing a new bus, up to ₹32 lakh, prevent new entrants to the industry.
Sensing danger, those operating single buses are winding up operations. Many operators whose buses are 15 years old have decided to call it a day.
A top MVD official said they had no information on private bus operators going to submit Form G and to agitate. “The move of the private bus operators has not come to our notice so far,” he said.
