Mounesh Vishwakarma

Daijiworld Media Network – Bantwal (EP)

Bantwal, Jan 30: Students under the leadership of the student’s federation, Bantwal unit staged protests at KSRTC B C Road bus stand on Friday morning condemning the delay in the issue of bus passes for students and irregularities in KSRTC.

Schools and colleges have already reopened in stages. Students are facing problems due to errors in the issue of bus passes. Students staying in distant places and going to schools and colleges depend on government buses. Students facing financial hardship due to Covid pandemic find it difficult to pay the bus fare every day. They have to remain inevitably at home which hinders their studies. KSRTC officials are following delay tactics on flimsy grounds when students approach them at the KSRTC office. Students are made to wait in the bus stand till late nights without going to their colleges, they said.

Students federation Bantwal taluk president Israr Goodinabali said that bus passes were available easily to the students in the past. The department has arranged bus passes through Seva Sindhu app in which students are unable to obtain passes even after a month. Protests will be held in front of the office of the deputy commissioner if the department officials do not respond to the grievances, he warned.

Ramanath Rai expresses support to student’s protests:

Former minister Ramanath Rai who received information about the protests, arrived at the spot and obtained information about the problems from the department being faced by the students. He expressed support to the protests and spoke to the bus stand officers directing them to issue bus passes to prevent problems for the students. He requested students to give up their protests and to go to their colleges assuring that he will join in the protests if the problem is not solved.

Bantwal block president Baby Kunder, Panemangalore block Congress president Sudeep Kumar Shetty, NSUI RTI cell national convener Anwith Kateel, NSUI Bantwal Vidhan Sabha block president Vinay Kumar Sindhya, secretary Mohammed Shafik, convener Najeeb Manchi, Aftab Shahir, Aftab Ali and Arbaz Ali were present. An appeal through traffic inspector Shilpa M Gowda was submitted later.