TN govt must improve condition of buses and ensure safety of passengers, Ramadoss says

CHENNAI: PMK leader S Ramadoss on Monday urged the Tamil Nadu government to take steps to ensure the safety of passengers travelling in government buses and also to ensure that there is no corruption in state transport corporations.
In a statement, Ramadoss said government buses were involved in eight accidents in the last two weeks, killing 29 people and injuring 78 others.
He cited accidents in Thanjavur, Cuddalore, Kumbakonam and other places in the state that had happened between the end of June and July 15.
He alleged that bus drivers were forced to put in long hours without rest.
In 2016-17, state government buses were involved in 1,209 accidents, in which 1,373 people died, he said.
He alleged that the number of accidents reported and casualties had increased by more than 20%. He said most of the accidents happened as the buses were not maintained properly and many drivers were forced to drive without rest.
Ramadoss said the places given to drivers to take rest were not suitable. He added that only around 7,000 buses out of 22,500 buses operated by state transport corporations were fit to be on the road.
The government should have purchased 20,000 buses in the last five years. Instead, it had purchased only 7,000 buses, he said.