When the Lokpal of Punjab, Daljit
Singh Dhaliwal, recently ordered an inquiry into the alleged illegal
operation of buses belonging to private transporters of Punjab in the
Union Territory of Chandigarh he was evidently looking at only the tip
of the iceberg.
A file photo of Parkash Singh Badal
flagging off an AC coach at a function.
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Punjab Public Transport - 2
How
the Badals hijacked Punjab’s luxury bus business
Chandigarh, September 27
In the past five years, there has been a decisive shift in the
ownership of buses for public transport. While Punjab Roadways and Pepsu
Road Transport Corporation (PRTC) were the public sector behemoths that
controlled almost 60 per cent of the market share a decade ago, they
have since lost their share substantially to the private sector.
Punjab Public Transport - 3
How
the transport policy was manipulated for private profit
Chandigarh, September 28
Soon after it came to power in
February 2007, the Shiromani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party (SAD-BJP)
alliance government headed by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal decided
to review the existing public transport policy.
Punjab Public Transport - 4
Public losses, private profits
Chandigarh, September 29
Transport corporations in the public sector in Punjab today face the same fate as Air India does in the aviation sector. If Air India is deep in the red after the open skies policy which saw private sector airliners mushroom, the two major Punjab state transport undertakings, Punjab Roadways and PEPSU Road Transport Corporation, PRTC, are rapidly going down the same road.
Why state transport undertakings are losing
out
A
tribune investigation Punjab Public Transport - 5
Silence
of the lambs
Inter-city rail links have been
inexplicably delayed yet the state MPs don’t yell
Chandigarh, September 30
After years of public pressure, the Union Ministry of Railways finally
scheduled a non-stop train linking Chandigarh with Amritsar earlier this
year. But even as it complied with the popular demand, it introduced one
of the slowest of its Duronto trains.
