THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Transport Minister AK Saseendran declared that GPS and Speed Governor will be made mandatory for all inter-state private buses from June 1. Currently, no buses are equipped with speed governors. He declared that action will be taken against the buses which are not equipped with speed governors, even if the vehicle is registered in a different state.

Motor Vehicle Department will take stern action against private buses which charge high fares from passengers. At present, the department has not fixed the fare for contract carriages. A committee will be appointed to study on the criteria to fix the rate on contract carriages and a final decision will be taken as per the report of this committee.

The minister pointed out that the operation of ticket booking agencies will come under scanner and action will be taken against the agencies which function without license.

New procedures will be made for issuing a license to these agencies and it will be strictly followed.

The transport minister also informed that Police and tax department will carry out inspections to find contract carriage buses that illegally function as goods carriage. “People go for private buses as the service of KSRTC is not enough. The RTC has been directed not to cancel any interstate trips for simple reasons. If canceled a replacement bus should be made available. Further steps will be taken to run more KSRTC buses in interstate routes”, the Minister said.