An unkind cut, say Melappedu residents

In 1981, Route No. 61A was introduced. It has been the lone bus service between Melappedu, a farming village near Avadi, and the Ambattur Industrial Estate bus terminus.

On March 28, it was turned into a cut service. The reason given for the move: Poor revenue generation from the service.

As a result of this change, the service will be operated only up to the Avadi bus terminus from Melappedu village, forcing villagers to board another bus to reach their workplaces in Ambattur. A majority of the commuters taking the service are poor farmers and wage labourers in Melappedu. They are upset with this new arrangement.

“We were not consulted before the change was introduced,” says B. Ravi, vice-president, Palaveddu village panchayat, which comprises Melappedu, Alathur and Edapalayam villages.

Earlier, 61A made at least six trips between Ambattur Industrial Estate and Melappedu every day with two drivers and conductors working in shifts.

After the day’s work, the bus used to return to the Ambattur Industrial Estate depot. Melappedu has around 4,000 residents. During rush hour, the bus would be packed to capacity. A majority of them are women from the locality who work in the industrial units at Ambattur.

Interestingly, every Ayudha Pooja, which falls in the month of September, villagers of Melappedu honour crew members of the bus service 61A for ensuring uninterrupted and safe travel for commuters from the village.

This tradition has been in existence since the bus service was introduced nearly four decades ago.

Residents say that in return, MTC has now made commuters suffer more by turning 61A into a cut-service.

“We never expected MTC will be harsh on poor commuters. They (MTC) should have sought public opinion before making this decision,” says S. Rajaammal, a commuter from Avadi.

Local MTC officials say the decision to turn the service into a cut-service was taken by senior officials at MTC’s headquarters in Pallavan House, Anna Salai, after considering poor revenue generation.

Also, officials say more buses are operated from Avadi bus terminus to various parts of the city. “We have no powers to revoke the decision taken by our higher-ups. Revenue collection remains the main reason for such decisions,” says an MTC official.