THE government’s punishment of cancelling the route permit of a bus company for involving in fatal accident becomes futile as the company owners remain ready to change company’s name and run the old buses under new banners. Recently, the government took action against two city service bus companies – Suprabhat Pvt Ltd and Jabal-e-Noor Paribahan – banning their entire fleets. An allegation currently surfaced that some of the owners of Suprabhat buses began to operate under the name of Victor Classic Paribahan. Tricky steps of some bus owners and support by some high-ups are the prime reasons for the indiscipline in the transport sector.
After a Suprabhat Pvt Ltd bus ran over and killed Bangladesh University of Professionals student Abrar Ahmed Chowdhury on March 19 on Pragati Sarani at Badda this year, the government stopped the movement of all buses running under the company. But on the night of September 7, a youth was killed and another was injured while a Victor Classic bus hit both of them in Kamar Para area in Uttara. Just two days before, the injured father was killed when a Victor Classic bus struck him at Uttara area. After the gruesome murder of Abrar, Suprabhat owners changed the paints and name of their buses to run them under Victor Classic. As the government cancelled the route permit of the company, buses under the company run under another name – a hide and seek game indeed.
What we see that no improvement is met in the transport sector despite taking a series of initiatives by the authorities concerned. The reality is that, the government makes one step ahead and then goes two steps back. That means there is no determination in implementing decision. Main obstacle is – the vested quarters inside the government are the policymakers.
