2,000 villages in state still don’t have bus connectivity

BENGALURU: Amid the loud debate in the state about ‘guarantee schemes’ including free bus travel for women, about 2,000 villages in the state still have no government‑run bus services.

Villages coming under the jurisdiction of KSRTC, NWKRTC and KKRTC are left without any bus connectivity. The government’s excuse is that they can’t provide buses due to the dominance of private operators and that there are no proper roads to run buses. The transport minister himself admitted that there is a shortage of buses.

Data shows a total of 1,983 villages still have no bus service at all in the state. Within the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation’s (KSRTC) jurisdiction, which covers 17 districts, 1,892 villages lack bus connectivity. Out of 21,748 villages, 20,090 have buses. However, 234 villages do not have roads suitable for heavy vehicles, so buses cannot operate there. In the remaining areas, private buses run.

In the North‑West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation region, 45 villages have no bus service. Among the six districts it serves, there are 4,610 villages, but only 4,565 of them have bus facilities.

About 46 villages have no bus service under the Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation. Out of 5,283 villages, only 5,237 have bus provision. The transport department says that buses are not being provided to many villages because they lack proper roads for bus traffic.