On one hand we have Central government and State government asking to follow all SOP and guidelines under Covid-19 pandemic and on other hand KTC buses ply without any social distancing by passengers while travelling.
In fact Kadamba State Transport has suspended shuttle buses since curfew was imposed in state for last the one month and local buses are plying with full capacity of commuters on board. The buses are packed with passengers and social distancing is almost forgotten. It’s ironic that KTC buses are plying with small buses of 30 to 35 passengers in the morning wee hours where many government staff, private sector staff and others have to reach office and hence the bus is packed with almost 60 passengers.
Buses from Vasco to Panjim are at full capacity and nobody is bothered to take precaution against Covid-19 as one has to reach their work places. The frequency of buses is less hence everyone wants to catch the bus even if It is full. In the evening too the story is the same. The gap between two buses is almost one hour for the route from Panjim to Vasco and hence everyone boards buses with no SOPs.
On the other hand there are buses plying every 15 minutes to Margao from Panjim though there is equal demand from Vasco city.The KTC authorities have not taken any care to cater to the needs of pasengers and hence the norms and SOPs have remained on paper. It is upto passengers to travel safely even in crowded buses and take care of themselves.
