Meet on transport policy fails, private buses go off roads today in Odisha

BHUBANESWAR: Over 17,000 private buses of Odisha will go off the roads on Wednesday as talks between the operators and the State Government failed on Tuesday. The All Odisha Private Bus Owners Association held a meeting with Transport Minister Nrusingh Chandra Sahoo in presence of Secretary G Srinivas, Transport Commissioner MS Madhi and Special Secretary Manoj Mishra.

The private bus operators have been demanding a clear-cut policy on City Bus Service which they allege encroaches the territory of private operators. They did not continue the discussion as Urban Development officials were not in attendance at the meeting.

The City buses are a major threat for private buses since the Government has allowed them to operate on routes for the latter, said spokesperson of the association Debashis Nayak.With the talks in limbo, the bus service will come to a half from 6 am on Wednesday though the State Government has set another round of meeting at 11 am. The private operators have also rejected collection of toll at toll gates.