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KOLKATA: City police have begun a special drive against old, ill-maintained buses in the city. According to cops, the drive includes buses, which are also using resoled tyres. On the first day of the drive, cops have seized five buses and mini-buses, which are not fit to be on the road.

A process has also been initiated to ascertain how the bus managed to bag the fitness certificate. “We are sending reports to transport department to take permanent action against the bus owners,” said a top traffic cop. The drive follows several accidents reported in the city due to the use of resoled tyres.

“We are committed to making city roads safer and hence we have started a drive to identify old and ill-maintained vehicles that are plying here. These vehicles often lead to accidents as their motor parts especially the brakes and tyres are outdated. Worse, they are prone to break downs, which cause unnecessary congestion. We have started a campaign for systematic and thorough inspection of such unfit vehicles. Our officials are checking all parameters, including visual condition of the body of the vehicle, condition of tyres, passenger boarding steps, handles, rear view mirrors and the ‘braking system.’ We have already seized five such buses that have been identified as not fit to run on the roads,” the cops wrote on their Facebook page.

Police said they are using various sections of the Motor Vehicles Act to compound the vehicles. “We have a separate section for resoled tyres under the MV Act. Besides that, we are using dangerous driving section to impound the buses. We feel that this is a direct violation of passenger safety,” explained a senior officer at Lalbazar.

Stung by the repeated bus accidents in the city, the cops now want the transport department to give them the power to recommend temporary suspension of bus permits ranging from a week to a month. Kolkata police is in discussion with the state to make the necessary legal changes. The RTO, though, will have the final decision on permanent cancellation of permit.

