Forget big talk, govt cannot even fine overcharging buses

CHENNAI: Are state transport authorities' and ministers' festival-time warnings to private bus operators over exorbitant fares a mere eyewash to appease the public? The question arises as the rule book states that the state does not have much to say in forcing the operators to fix its fare for any stipulated distance.
Come festive season and private bus fares start hitting the roof. The situation is no different this time.

Official data shows operators are often booked for permit violations but almost never for exorbitant fares.

For instance, nearly 41 operators were detained in between August 24 to 27 this year (Vinayagar Chaturthi). Of this, more than 35 were for not obtaining permit and violating tax norms.

The reason is that the existing provisions in the Motor Vehicle Act state that the government cannot enforce a fixed fare for private omni buses.

Referring to Section 137 in the MV Act, advocate VS Suresh said, "Though there are provisions in the act which allows the state to amend the rules and thereby , regulate fares, there have been no proposals by the state to do so."

Even after the

Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court

in 2015 directed the state to supervise the fare structure, nothing has been done, he added. Private operators take advantage of the situation. Responding to this, a senior official from the state transport department said there was no clarity as to who holds the authority in this regard as a case is still pending in the Supreme Court.

A Afzal, MD of Parveen Travels and president of

Tamil Nadu Omni Bus Owners Association

said they have obtained an all-India contract carriage permit under Section 88 (9) of the MV Act and the Supreme Court judgement in 2016 clearly states that the authority to fix fares is vested with the operators in case of `contract' carriages. "We are not charging directly. An aggregator (redBus) is collecting it. So, the fare slab which we have come out with based on our costing stands legally valid," he said.