Passengers travelling to various places through different RTC bus stands across the district faced untold miseries due to lack of buses as 547 buses of the total of 669 buses have been engaged by the TRS leaders to send people to the party’s public meeting at the Parade Grounds in Secunderabad on Monday.

The plight of young and old was indescribable as they had to wait hours together for buses without having food at bus stands.

Many passengers arrived from villages without knowledge of the ruling party’s public meeting and diversion of buses.

An RTC senior officer pleading unanimity said that the MLAs vied with each other for engaging buses resulting in dearth of buses for passengers.

He, however, said that the ruling party leaders paid hire charges beforehand for buses. An estimated 2.30 lakh passengers travel from different bus stands in the district every day. Though there was no uproar from passengers it was true that they suffered a lot with lack of facilities and also higher day temperature, he said.

Crowded

The bus stands, meanwhile, were seen crowded with milling passengers till afternoon and after a long wait those who were to travel nearby places took to jeeps and other private vehicles.

Those who had to go far off places rushed to railway stations to catch trains. Thus, the railway stations witnessed unprecedented passenger rush. However, many others postponed their journeys.

On the other hand, passengers coming from Hyderabad also tasted bitter experience with long waiting at Jubilee and Mahatma Gandhi Bus Stations.

Students coming here after a couple of hours waiting postponed their travel at MGBS, according to information reaching here.