Ludhiana: Govt buses ferry attendees for AAP event, commuters left in lurch

Officials at the bus stand revealed that Punjab Roadways, with a fleet of 114 buses, deployed 80 buses on various routes to transport AAP leaders to the event

In a move that severely impacted daily bus services, Punjab Roadways and PRTC deployed a substantial portion of their fleet to facilitate attendees at an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) event in Khanna.

Passengers waiting at the bus in Ludhiana on Saturday. (Gurpreet Singh//HT)

Out of a total of 235 buses across the district, 170 were mobilised for this purpose, causing disruptions to approximately 75% of bus services at the Ludhiana bus stand.

Officials at the bus stand revealed that Punjab Roadways, with a fleet of 114 buses, deployed 80 buses on various routes to transport AAP leaders to the event. Similarly, out of the 120 buses under PRTC, 90 were assigned to different routes for the same purpose.

A counter employee, on the basis of anonymity, at the bus stand said that such massive deployments have become a recurring issue, with political functions and rallies leading to frequent disruptions in bus services.

Ranjit Singh Bagga, general manager of Punjab Roadways, confirmed the directive to deploy buses for the AAP event, stating that the allocated buses had been dispatched to various locations as instructed.

“We are currently managing the bus routes, but the availability of buses has led to a reduction in services. Routes to major destinations like Delhi, Amritsar, and Chandigarh, among others, have been affected, with several routes being canceled,” Bagga said.

On Saturday, buses to Amritsar, Delhi, Jalandhar, Ferozepur, and other destinations were redirected, resulting in cancellations of numerous routes and prolonged waiting times for passengers.

For instance, on routes to Amritsar, where around 150 time slots are typically allocated, only 50 were operational due to the bus shortage. Similarly, Chandigarh routes saw a reduction from 180 to 75 time slots for Punjab Roadways and PRTC buses, while the Ambala route experienced a decrease from 50 to 25 time slots. This significant reallocation of transportation resources directly impacted daily services, causing inconvenience to commuters.

Navneet Singh, a frequent bus traveler, expressed frustration, highlighting the regular disruptions caused by political events. “I request the state government not to disrupt bus services due to political functions. I waited for around two hours for a bus to Ambala, only to find out it was canceled. This is unacceptable,” he said.

Jaswant Kaur echoed similar sentiments, stating, “Political rallies are causing multiple problems for commuters. I waited for an hour for a bus to Ferozepur and eventually had to take a private bus. This is affecting the department’s revenue as well.”