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Mangalore , Nov. 16

THE Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is planning to upgrade bus stands in the State at a cost of Rs 250 crore. Under the plan, bus stands in major pilgrim centres will be upgraded, and new ones will be constructed, if necessary.

Addressing presspersons here on Saturday, the KSRTC Chairman, Mr Devaraj, said apart from introducing branded service to pilgrim centres such as Dharmasthala, Udupi, and Subrahmanya, KSRTC is also planning to modernise bus stands there.

Work on the Rs 1.7-crore bus stand at Dharmasthala is in its final phase and likely to be opened for the public in December.

He said that Rs 48.47 lakh would be spent on construction of a new bus stand in Subrahmanya.

One of the major projects of the KSRTC is the construction of a modern bus stand at Nittoor in Udupi town. The Rs 2.5-crore project will be taken up on 6.5 acre of land.

The proposed bus stand will have 18 bus-bays, a commercial complex, parking lot for vehicles, and a park. Work on the bus stand will begin early next year, he said.

Apart from bus stand modernisation, the corporation will reduce the number of seats in buses from 61 to 55 to provide. Some of the depots will be shifted to more spacious areas.

Rural mini-bus service: Mr Devaraj said the introduction of mini-bus service in rural areas has helped in improving transport facilities.

These services have proved beneficial to the corporation, and the corporation is successful in reducing losses.

The strength of mini-buses will be increased to 1,000 with the introduction of 500 more buses next year, he said.

Asked about the `price war' between the KSRTC and private operators in Mangalore division, he said that competition would help provide good service to the passengers. Introduction of mini-bus service on the Mangalore-Udupi route would further hasten the competition in the division, he added.

The Mangalore division comprising of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, and Kodagu districts is the second largest revenue earner for the corporation after the Bangalore division. Till October 2003, Mangalore division earned Rs 2.29-crore profit compared to Rs 78.72 lakh earned during 2002-03.

To provide efficient service to the passengers, KSRTC has decided to refund 10 per cent of the cost of the ticket in its branded services such as "Venkatadri" and "Om Manjunatha" for the late arrival or departure of the bus.

The amount will be paid in the form of coupons that can be used for future travel, he added.

Under the Accident Relief Fund (ARF), Re 1 is being collected from those passengers who buy tickets worth more than Rs 40.

The immediate relatives of those who die in accidents involving KSRTC bus will be paid Rs 1 lakh compensation from the fund, the Chairman said.

The corporation has taken various steps to avoid pollution, and all its vehicles are being checked periodically. KSRTC has taken initiatives to grow trees on the vacant lands on its premises, he added.

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