Free bus travel for SSLC students in Karnataka, but only during exams

The Karnataka government has announced free travel in buses across the State for students writing SSLC exams from March 28 to April 11. A hall ticket is mandatory for students to travel for free on both KSRTC and BMTC buses

Karnataka State Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) will let SSLC students travel for free during exams. Karnataka Secondary School Leaving Certificat (SSLC) exams are being held from March 28 to April 11 across the state.

Bengaluru, India - September 30, 2021: BMTC (Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation) Main Bus Stand at Majestic in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India, on Thursday, September 30, 2021. (Photo by Samuel Rajkumar/ Hindustan Times)

In many parts of the state, children from remote villages come to the town to study and give exams. For which they usually have to walk for kilometres, making it difficult for them to reach any of the test centres on time. Many students are now expected to benefit from this order from the Department of Transportation.

The State Transport Department has issued a directive for free bus travel for students on both regular and express buses. A hall ticket will be mandatory for students to travel for free on all government-run buses.

Students will be required to show their hall ticket to claim free travel, which will be checked along with the bus pass by the bus conductor, to make sure nobody is misusing this benefit. According to the directive, the bus staff has been asked to stop the bus according to students' requirements, so that they can reach the exam centre on time, without walking too much.

Last year, the Minister of Education had written to the Department of Transport to provide better bus services for SSLC students during exams. This time, the Department of Transportation has issued an order for free travel for the students, which will enable thousands of students to take exams from afar.

The SSLC exams have been scheduled between March 28 to April 11. The test time is from 10.30 am to 1.45 pm. Each subject is given 15 minutes to read the question paper and the remaining time is for writing the exam. This year there will be no Corona Pass. Karnataka Minister of Education, BC Nagesh, has made it clear that all students will have to take the SSLC examination physically.