With the increasing in number of accidents on the highway caused by KSRTC, the Karnataka High Court has ordered the bus corporation to provide details of drivers who do not have a driving license. And the court has not taken kindly to the surge in accidents, blaming the KSRTC for being negligent.
Bangalore Mirror reports that, the high court asked KSRTC if it was employing “agents of Yama” rather than drivers, and said that a government-owned organisation could not allow people without licences to drive its buses and harm innocent commuters and pedestrians.
The HC order was issued earlier after an appeal filed by KSRTC against an insurance company. The case regards the payment of insurance in an accident where the driver of a KSRTC bus did not have a valid driving licence for a heavy transport vehicle (HTV).
“There are innocent people on the roads. Think of them. The corporation is running so many HTV vehicles and do all drivers have a licence?” the court asked.
It asked whether the validity of licences of KSRTC’s 10,000 drivers were checked before the corporation hired the drivers.
Earlier, the court had given KSRTC 15 days to conduct a survey of its drivers and provide a list of those with valid licences and those who have not renewed them or got them endorsed (to drive an HTV).
However, when the case came up for hearing on September 30, the corporation failed furnish the details. The advocate told the court that some details were available. Only BMTC and NWKRTC had provided details.
The court said that it would place the matter before the Registrar so that an appropriate bench could take up contempt proceedings.
“You are a state-owned organisation. How can you entrust a bus to a person who has no licence. The corporation is virtually killing commuters on the roads through its incompetent drivers,” the court said.
The court refused to give the transport corporation more time and directed the case to be listed as the first matter on Thursday.
On September 24, a KSRTC bus travelling to Kolhapur from Bengaluru rammed into a car in which five were killed and two sustained injuries.
KSRTC Airavat bus ferrying around 22 passengers, bus fell into a ditch after dashing against a bridge on the Bangalore-Honnavara Highway on September 4.
In the last six months many accidents caused by KSRTC buses have been reported. Over 17 people have been killed and more than 51 have been injured in these accidents.