Bus operators in the city are heaving a sigh of relief after the Calcutta High Court directed the state to reconsider the age limit for phasing out of private and minibuses.

The bus operators have welcomed the Calcutta High Court direction that came against the backdrop of a petition filed by the owners of route 24. The court is said to have directed the principal secretary of the state transport department to reconsider the age of 15-year phasing out of buses.

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The private bus operators are considering the court direction as oxygen to their crippling industry that they claimed to be ‘on the verge of collapsing.’ Wishing for the implementation of extension of the age-limit for phasing out of private buses and minibuses, the operators are considering the two-year relief as a breather that could help them survive in more than one ways. “We had been demanding extension for a long time and were later forced to approach the court,” said the general secretary of Joint Council of Bus Syndicates, Tapan Banerjee. “If two year extension is given, it will come as a great help in enabling us to survive. We would have lost many buses, their operators as well as owners. The earlier the direction is acted upon, the better it is for the people associated with the industry and the commuters of the city. Around 2,000 buses that were on the path of being phased out in a month or so, would now be retained,” he added.

According to Pradeep Narayan Bose, general secretary of West Bengal Bus and Minibus Owners’ Association, had such steps been taken earlier, the transport industry, which has been reduced considerably over the recent past, would have been in a better situation. “The number of buses that have shrunk in the recent years particularly in the post-covid era, could have been retained while the numerous labourers associated with the industry would not have changed their profession,” rued the leader of a private bus operators’ union. “Nevertheless, the extension of two years also can help us sustain the challenges. It will not only help the operators, drivers, conductors or even owners in terms of income, but will also enable us to get some time for improving financial capabilities in replacing the phased out vehicles with the new ones,” he added.