ST shifts stranded students to Haryana, Himachal Pradesh

Vijay Pinjarkar | TNN | May 5, 2020, 04:22 IST

Nagpur: Like the Indian Railways, which is running ‘Shramik Specials’ to ferry stranded migrants, the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) is playing a crucial role in taking stranded students and migrants to their homes.
On Monday, a MSRTC bus left with 22 Navodaya Vidyalaya students to Himachal Pradesh from Shegaon (Buldhana). The students had come here under an exchange programme but were stranded during lockdown.
“We shifted these students after request from district administration. Similarly, 22 students from Navodaya School in Navegaon Khairi in Nagpur district were taken to Haryana on Friday. The bus returned on Monday. MSRTC was paid around Rs3.28 lakh for these two interstate trips by the school managements,” said Shivaji Jagtap, deputy general manager (DyGM), Vidarbha.
The MSRTC also brought 160 migrants from Gadchiroli district, who were dropped at Maharashtra border by Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments. On Sunday, 140 migrants, who headed for Uttar Pradesh in a train from Nagpur, were brought in eight buses from Bhandara.
Jagtap said though it will take time to start full-fledged bus operations, administration has allowed 50% operations within Gadchiroli district, which is in green zone.
The MSRTC has started 10 trips to tehsil places like Armori, Sironcha, Asarali and other towns from bus depots in Aheri and Gadchiroli. Buses are being operated on demand from public. “We will operate buses on demand by district administration,” said Jagtap.
While no bus operations can be started in red zones as per the government guidelines, district like Wardha, which is in green zone, has also been hit as it borders Yavatmal and Nagpur districts which are in red zone.
Similar is the case with Amravati, Bhandara and Chandrapur districts, which are in orange zone, but border districts in red zone.