KOLKATA: Commuters in the city on Friday alleged that private bus operators were fleecing them. However, the state Transport department ran its full fleet of government buses to ensure that passengers were not inconvenienced.
"The mini bus conductor charged me Rs 8 extra. Instead of Rs 12 (the normal fare), he asked to pay Rs 20 for the journey (starting from Metiabruz to Howrah," said Prantika Mukherjee, a passenger of 123 route minibus.
While the mini buses charged Rs 5 – 8 extra, the minimum fare (0 – 4 km) of the private buses shot up from Rs 7 to 10 in different routes.
When asked why the fare had been hiked without the approval of the state government, the conductor said: "The government has reduced seating capacity to 50 per cent due to COVID-19 pandemic. But, diesel prices have increased more than Rs 15 times during the year and the fare is constant."
The buses stopped plying after safety restrictions were imposed on May 15 to curb the spread of Coronavirus in the state.
"Only a few private buses ran on Friday. We have received some complaints from passengers where buses are charging extra fare. We will look into the matter," said Tapan Banerjee, general secretary of Joint Council of Bus Syndicate.
According to the state Transport department sources, 4000 government buses plied on the roads on Thursday. Over 100 more buses were added to the fleet on Friday.