Karnataka allows free bus travel for migrants till Tuesday

Earlier, the government said migrants will have to pay a fare while travelling by Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation buses, adding that the state would bear the cost of buses returning empty.

After criticism by opposition parties, the Karnataka government headed by chief minister BS Yediyurappa has announced that migrants seeking to return to their home districts or states by buses would be ferried free of cost till Tuesday.

Workers from North Karnataka, who were stranded due to the nationwide lockdown, leave in a special bus from district collector office after the government allowed people to travel to their respective destinations with certain conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic, in Bengaluru. (ANI/ File photo)

Earlier, the government said migrants will have to pay a fare while travelling by Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation buses, adding that the state would bear the cost of buses returning empty.

However, this move come in for criticism by opposition parties. KPCC president DK Shivakumar questioned how the migrants – many without work for nearly 50 days --- would pay the fares.

The government has now agreed to this demand, but has appealed to migrants not to crowd and bus stations. Social distancing and hygiene should be maintained to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the government said.

Karnataka also said five more Covid-19 cases has been registered since Saturday evening, taking the state’s tally to 606 cases with 282 discharges and 25 deaths.