With Onam just a week away, private bus operators plying from Bengaluru to Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Ernakulam and Kottayam in Kerala have nearly doubled the fares. Thiruvonam falls on September 14.
Many Malayalees in the city say that most private bus operators used Friday’s bandh as an excuse to fleece passengers. With many offices closed on Friday, and Bakrid falling on Tuesday, people decided to leave for Kerala on Thursday evening itself.
“I wanted to book a ticket to Ernakulam on Thursday evening but most buses were full. A ticket from Bengaluru to Ernakalum costs about `1,100 in an ordinary bus. But the fare is now over `2,000,” said Cijo Abraham, a resident of Madiwala.
Despite the demand for train tickets going up during festival season, the South Western Railway is yet to announce special trains to Kerala. Both Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation and Kerala State Road Transport Corporation have also not announced special buses to Kerala due to the protests over Cauvery water.
A senior official of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation said, “We normally operate additional buses during Onam, but we have not announced any special services because of protests on Cauvery issue. Our regular services have been affected because of the protests in the Cauvery basin districts.”
An official of Kerala State Road Transport Corporation said, “We usually operate 15 additional bus services for Onam from Bengaluru to Kerala, but this year we added only eight services because of the protests.”
Advocate Mento Isaac, president of Bengaluru Malayali Forum, alleged that no additional trains are operating from Bengaluru because of the pressure from the private bus lobby.
