Dakshina Kannada DC orders private transporters to install doors in buses within a month

The DC instructed the operators to submit affidavits confirming installation of doors before the deadline. The law (Indian Motor Vehicles Act and rules made thereunder) is clear on the issue — every stage carriage operator has to compulsorily install doors, he explained.

Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner M.P. Mullai Muhilan directed stage carriage operators, city, mofussil as well as express, to install doors in buses registered after 2017 within one month. He told them that doors must be closed whenoperate them while closing doors on the move.

Chairing the District Road Safety Committee meeting in Mangaluru on February 28, Mr. Muhilan also instructed the operators to submit affidavits confirming installation of doors before the deadline. The law (Indian Motor Vehicles Act and rules made thereunder) is clear on the issue — every stage carriage operator has to compulsorily install doors, he explained.

Mr. Muhilan said there could not be any compromise on the safety of the general public. People have been demanding installation of doors in buses in the light of several mishaps where passengers have lost their lives after being thrown out of moving buses, he said.

Buses operating in neighbouring Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and other States ply with doors closed to ensure passenger safety. Even Bangaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) operates with pneumatic doors because of which there is orderliness in public transport in the State capital, the DC informed.

Expressing concern over the safety of road users, motorists as well as pedestrians, in view of the mishaps occurring due to absence of street lights on flyovers of National Highways, Mr. Muhilan wanted to know from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) the reasons for ignoring the safety measure.

Flyovers on NH 66 at Surathkal, Kulur, Kottara Chowki, Kuntikan, Pumpwell and Thokkottu do not have street lights, and plunge in darkness at night. The NHAI did not take any step to address the issue for the last one decade despite a huge public outcry, Mr. Muhilan noted. He directed the NHAI Project Director to explain the dereliction of duty, and address the issue at the earliest.

He directed the Public Works Department to issue notices to agencies that have dug up roads across the district to lay pipes and cables. Appropriate action should be initiated against the agencies concerned for endangering public safety, he told officials.