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City buses hike fares sans official approval

By Staff reporter - 15 Sep 2010 12:00 AM GMT

GUWAHATI, July 1 � The common people have always been at the receiving end and this has been proved again and again. This is that section of the population that has to queue up for availing even the basic amenities of a civic life and has to very often raise their voice of protest to get their grievances addressed.

With the hike in the prices of petroleum products and LPG cylinder, once again this common class has been subjected to immense hardship and their misfortune is manifesting in every sphere of life right to taking a ride in a city bus.

Since the increase in the prices of petroleum products, some public mode of transportation including city buses without any approval from the transport department, have been seen to charge more than the prevailing rate of fare. For the general public, city buses are the cheapest and most convenient mode of transport.

Several citizens on Thursday complained that a few city buses plying on the Chandmari Basistha route were asking the passengers more than the prevailing rate. �I had to get involved in argument with the conductor over the bus fare. We are ready to pay more provided it is officially approved,� said Nilakanta Gogoi, a resident of Wireless. Gogoi said that the authorities concerned should however take into consideration the difficulty that the citizens would face if new bus fares are very high.

Another citizen Nirmali Chetia said that the common citizens have been paying the price always and people like her who travel everyday by city bus are going to be hit hard if the city bus fares are increased.

Apart from the city buses, the other modes of public transportation like auto rickshaw, trekker etc are also charging more from the people. �Citing the rise of price, every means of public transportation is charging more from us,� said another citizen.