Complaints about non receipt of tickets
SHILLONG: After receiving several complaints from passengers about non receipt of tickets on payment of their fares to conductors of the Shillong Public Transport Service (SPTS) and their different avatars, the Urban Affairs department has decided to legally prosecute all such conductors.
This was informed by Prashant Naik , Principal Secretary, Urban Affairs Department, here on Wednesday.
“We have received several complaints from passengers about arbitrary fares charged by these buses which were meant to provide easy transportation to citizens. The Department has also received complaints that conductors of these buses do not issue tickets as a rule and when passengers demand tickets, they are treated rudely. Henceforth any complaint against any conductor will result in legal action against him,” Naik said adding that passengers must cooperate by bringing such instances to the notice of the Urban Affairs Department.
It may be mentioned that the red coloured buses and maxi taxis were launched by Urban Affairs Department as part of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission and is implemented in select cities.
In Meghalaya the business of running these buses has been outsourced to private parties but whether these private parties will also maintain the buses is not very clear since several buses are now grounded and parked at Mawpat.
Observers wonder how long these buses will run without regular maintenance.