Private buses in Rajasthan will go on a strike on August 27 to demand fare hikes, permit adjustments, tax relief, and operational flexibility. The Kota Bus Operators Association and the Bus Owners Association of Rajasthan have sought urgent government action on their demands.
The Kota Bus Operators Association and the Bus Owners Association of Rajasthan will not run buses on August 27 as part of a state-level strike. A 24-point demand letter has been given to the state government, highlighting the grievances and urging immediate action.
The association’s demands include a variety of measures aimed at improving the operational conditions and financial viability of private bus operators. The key demands include increase in daily fares from Rs 2,250 to Rs 4,500 and to align diesel prices with those of neighbouring states.
The bus operators have requested to extend the overlap limit for private buses on national routes from 25 km to 50 km, and to continue issuing both online and offline temporary permits. The associations have appealed for the waiver of two months’ tax in flood-affected areas.
They are also demanding extending the validity of public transport permits from one year to 10 years.
Among the demands is the implementation of 50% fare exemption to be given to women and senior citizens in private buses and adjust subsidy in tax. They have requested to issue a time table from the Transport Department with the consent of private bus operators.
Patron of the Bus Owners Association Babulal Panjwani stated that despite repeated appeals to the Transport Department, no effective solutions have been provided, leading to the decision to stage a chakka jam (roadblock).
He warned that if the government remains unresponsive to their demands, an indefinite strike might be considered. Panjwani said, “The state government should increase the permission to operate in NCR area for 10 years on installation of CNG or BS6 engine in NCR area.”
“The state should also increase the number of bus services in rural areas and should also increase city permits. The government should stop autos, cruisers, jeeps operating illegally on private routes,” Panjwani added.
Satyanarayan Sahu, state president of the association, emphasised the critical shortage of transportation options due to the limited number of state transport buses. He said, “There only 2,600 government buses operating on nationalised routes, while 8,000 permits given are allocated for the nationalised routes.”
“Therefore, citizens are not getting enough buses to ease their travel. The association has called for permits of non-operating buses to be reallocated to private operators to ensure that citizens have access to necessary transport services,” Sahu added.
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