By Our Reporter
SHILLONG: Students and staff of North Eastern Hill University are facing bus scarcity for the last fortnight or so.
It is learnt that students and staff have to go to the university in one bus from Laban in place of two buses available earlier. “It is like travelling as cattle in only one bus,” said a student. He said that recently he had to hang out of the bus with just one of his foot on the footboard.
An official of the university said, “With only one bus from Laban, it has taken toll upon the travellers since passengers of two buses are accommodating in one.”
Another student of the university said that a bus in the Upper Shillong route has also broken down. Students and staff from this route are facing inconveniences due to the breakdown of this bus.
“In this route students and staff board the buses from various locations. With a broken bus for the last many days now, students and staff have no other option but to avail other modes of communication, which makes it expensive,” said some university students.
Few professors said that the moment a bus arrives in the affected routes, all jump into it to take the seats and available space. “The university buses have become packed city buses. The authority should try and make the buses available on time,” fumed one of them.
A table clerk from the transport section, Administrative Block, NEHU said that four buses are in the workshop for repairing. Though the clerk could not identify all the four routes, he said that repairing of the vehicles is taking time since some vehicle parts/accessories are not available locally.
He also said that there is standing order from the department that the transport section cannot take the service of any private vehicles to makeup the vehicle scarcity in various bus routes of the university.
Meanwhile, Assistant Registrar, Administration-II (Transport), NEHU Mr IS Syiemlieh, said, “We have repaired two buses and they will be in service from Monday. The other two needs complete engine overhauling and will be ready by a week time.” While informing that the university was not getting private buses when it tried to hire some after the breakdown, Mr Syiemlieh said that the university took all precautions and even contacted MTC regarding and has also written to the Transport Commissioner.
“They said that the MTC is expecting another 20/30 new buses following which it will allot few in the NEHU route,” said the officer. He even mentioned that the university has sought for new buses from the UGC and the Union Ministry in the past for new buses since most of its buses are 18 to 25 years old.
‘“But they said that they cannot give new buses and asked us to continue with what we have which is the problem,” he said.