Rabindranath Biswas
Diglipur, July 22: Port Blair bound STS bus which departs from Diglipur in the early morning at 05:00 a.m. takes a diversion from ATR/NH4 and enters Kalighat from Kalara junction for picking the passengers while going to Port Blair; and while arriving the bus from Port Blair departing at 04:30 am, it enters Kalighat from the same Kalara junction for disembarkation of the passengers, and it has caused a considerable amount of resentment among the passengers.
Talking to Andaman Sheekha Daily, Mr. Mahadev Gain, the Zilla Parishad Member, Radhanagar constituency said that he has with him the grievance of the STS bus passengers who poured out their vexatious journey experiences to him. Briefing on the passengers’ travelling experiences, the ZPM said that the Port Blair bound STS bus which departs from Diglipur in the early morning at 05:00 a.m. takes a diversion from ATR/NH4 and enters Kalighat from Kalara junction for picking the passengers while going to Port Blair; and while arriving the bus from Port Blair departing at 04:30 am, it enters Kalighat from the same Kalara junction for disembarkation of the passengers. As such, it consumes/eats away the precious time of the Port Blair bound passengers on board the STS bus which leaves Diglipur at 05:00 a.m. in one hand, and owing to this undesired delay at Kalighat, the Port Blair bound STS bus doesn’t get the 12:30 p.m. convoy on the other hand; passengers thus have to bear the wrath of the situation created by a whimsical and illogical decision, the ZPM alleged.
The passengers are left stranded at the jetties for about two-and-half hours; in fact it mars the entire journey of the passengers travelling on this trip, he maintained. However, Mr. Gain is not less concerned about the problems of the passengers boarding the Port bound STS bus (05:00 am trip) from Kalighat and he said that, so far the inconvenience of the passengers of Kalighat & Ramnagar areas are concerned, there is reportedly a connecting local STS bus plying from Kalighat & Ramnagar to Diglipur in the morning hours which serves the purpose that is to say that the passengers of Kalighat & Ramnagar may get down at Kalara junction and catch the Port Blair bound STS bus, and thus trouble eliminated; however, if this service doesn’t exist, then it should be in place to cater to/serve the said purpose, the ZPM insisted.
And similarly, the passengers coming from Port Blair by the bus which leaves Port Blair at 04:30 a.m. may get down at Kalara junction and board the local STS bus plying in the evening time from Diglipur Bazaar to Kalighat & Ramnagar areas/time arrangement of the evening trip to Ramnagar is done to facilitate the passengers coming from Port Blair by this 04:30 a.m trip, Mr. Gain suggested. According to Mr. Gain, the bus has to reportedly enter Kalighat route for even a single passenger and which is really exasperating for the majority of the passengers on board the bus as they have to unnecessarily spend about an hour travelling an extra distance (16 km to and fro Kalara junction) and have to bear the brunt only because of a single/handful of passengers.
The ZPM further said that the Port Blair bound STS bus plying to Kalighat in to and fro trips Diglipur and Port Blair and vice versa is illogical and unreasonable and which should be withdrawn immediately. And if this service is not withdrawn, then he demanded that the very bus arriving from Port Blair entering the Kalighat route should also ply up to Shyamnagar/Jal Tikrey (30 km from Diglipur Bazaar) and Lamiya Bay (22 km from Diglipur Bazaar) to drop the passengers, as the majority passengers, among whom there are long-route residents of Shyamnagar/JalTikrey and Lamiya Bay don’t get the connecting bus on their routes i.e. Shyamnagar/JalTikrey and Lamiya Bay and get into trouble after the undesired delay in the Kalighat route, Mr. Gain argued.
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