Can't kill advertisements on KSRTC

KSRTC is one such public service system in Kerala that is dying a slow death. News in recent times showed how the age-old public transportation system strives to hold back to life. The payments for pensioners and employees currently in service face arrears. Pensioners lining up in protest and daring to end their fated life is still an ache to society and the government as a whole. The government is left clueless and is labeled financially decrepit with nothing big to take away from the nearly empty coffers. So, KSRTC resorts to advertisements and other sponsorships to help pay at least the monthly salaries to their dejected employees. While the transportation system strives hard to function, out of blue comes the high court order banning advertisements on KSRTC buses. Just take the relief one experience while being provided oxygen after a scare run without breath. KSRTC is also running in shambles and needs oxygen in the form of ads to survive in these trying times. Advertisements on buses are not something ubiquitous in Kerala, as many states run in a similar pattern. There are no cases of annoyance reported nor public facing any trouble with ads on buses in any other states, then why Kerala?

The high court decision came in the wake of the Vadakkencherry accident that claimed the lives of innocent schoolchildren. Advertisements on buses act as a deterrent to careful driving, the high court observed. But if given a proper eye into the issue, advertisements are not the mainspring for accidents, not even close. The Kerala roads are in tatters and are barely drivable and no one bats an eye to that. The advertisements are mostly placed on the sides and rear of transport vehicles that never even get into the eye of vehicles coming from the opposite side.

In this new time, advertisements are a big source of revenue. Stopping it in one single go will shatter innumerably the prospect of a toiling transportation system. Considering that, the latest supreme court order of putting a stay to the High court orders of no advertisements on buses, is nothing more than a saving grace for the government. It is also needed for courts to keep a pragmatic mind will issuing orders that can put the economy on a downward slope. With a gleam of hope, KSRTC is ready to engage in some amendments and has decided to form a panel headed by a retired high court judge to zero in on what advertisements suit best to KSRTC. The iconic bus service system is through its transforming phase and has adopted phone payment systems through QR codes, linking well with the present-day trends. All these policies send a relieving sign that KSRTC is readying up for a change. More pragmatic policies that suit the present-day needs await KSRTC, and if done the blame game towards KSRTC will subside and the iconic service will slowly gear up onto the right path.