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Karnataka suspends bus services to Maha as Maratha quota agitation intensifies
To minimise inconvenience to passengers travelling to Maharashtra, Karnataka is operating buses up to the interstate border
As the Maratha reservation agitation in Maharashtra intensifies, Karnataka has temporarily halted all bus services to the neighbouring state, officials said, in a move to ensure passengers’ safety and prevent damage to the vehicles from possible attacks by the agitationists.
To minimise inconvenience to passengers travelling to Maharashtra, Karnataka is operating buses up to the interstate border, from where travellers can continue their journeys to the neighbouring state, officials added.
“The reservation stir has led to vandalisation and arson of buses from various states, including Karnataka. Consequently, Karnataka has suspended bus services to Maharashtra. This move follows an incident where a bus from the Balki depot in Bidar district was set ablaze earlier this week,” said Ganesh Rathod, the divisional controller of North West Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (NWKSRTC).
“Given the festive season and the presence of people with relatives in both Karnataka and Maharashtra, Karnataka is facilitating travel by operating buses up to the border. This arrangement has been established through mutual understanding between the two states and is activated during such situations,” Rathod said.
A mob attack on a Karnataka bus in Latur district -- in which passengers and bus staff were targeted, windshields were shattered, and the bus was set on fire -- has justified the suspension of services to Maharashtra, officials said. The East-West Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (EWKSRTC) has instructed its staff in Maharashtra to relocate buses to nearby depots or police stations to prevent harm to passengers and damage to vehicles.
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Kalyan-Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KKRTC) managing director Rachappa said, “Depots in Vijayapur and Bagalkot districts initially ceased services to Maharashtra after a bus from the Balki depot was set on fire. Subsequently, Belagavi and Chikkodi depots in Belagavi district have suspended services to Maharashtra.”
Before the suspension, Vijayapur and Bagalkot divisions operated around 150 buses daily to destinations in Maharashtra, such as Solhapur, Sangli, and Miraj. Belagavi and Chikkodi divisions, which have halted services from Thursday, ran over 300 buses to major cities, such as Pune and Mumbai.
Passengers who had booked seats for travel to Maharashtra have got their fares refunded, said Vijayapur deputy divisional controller Mohammed Fayaz. “Not only the services to long-distance places like Pune, Mumbai, Latur, Nanded, and Tulajapur have been stopped, but also services to places situated on the border of Maharashtra have been suspended,” added Fayaz.
Many individuals from Nippani, Chikkodi, and Raibag taluks in Belagavi district, situated on the border with Maharashtra, work in government and private sectors in Kolhapur, a commercial and industrial hub in southern Maharashtra. They often park their vehicles near the border, cross on foot, and use vehicles waiting in Maharashtra to reach their workplaces.
Kavita Sanikop, a banker with a nationalised bank in Kolhapur who has settled in Nippani town in Karnataka, told HT that she used to park her two-wheeler on the premises of the bus stand at Nippani, cross the state border, and board government and private vehicles to reach her workplace. “Not only me, but hundreds, including women working in the industrial area in Kagal taluk, follow the same method every day.”
Basavaraj Patil, working as a manager at an industry in Kagal, said the halted bus services have not impacted them, as they have plenty of other modes of transportation.
Private bus operators have taken advantage of the situation by raising fares, particularly for long-distance routes to cities like Mumbai and Pune. Private operators say they have hiked fares by up to 50%, which they say is a practice during holidays and festivals.
Viresh Patil, a Pune resident working in Belagavi, said, “It is unfair on the part of private bus operators to exploit people by charging two to three times the regular fare during school holidays, festivals, and similar situations.”
