Bengaluru: Free bus passes for students may remain elusive
“Transport expenses should not be a hindrance for students travelling to far-off schools and colleges,” Siddaramaiah had said during his February 2018 Budget speech.
Chances are that the new government will not implement the previous government’s scheme.
The new academic year has begun but there is no sign of any of the four state-run public transport corporations issuing free bus passes to students. This, despite the previous government’s Budget announcement that 20 lakh students would get travel passes free of cost.
Chances are that the new government will not implement the previous government’s scheme. And, it appears that the reasons are more financial than political. KSRTC and BMTC officials say transport corporations are not in a position to roll out the scheme without the state government extending a subsidy. With the coalition government already under pressure to waive farm loans, bus subsidy seems highly unlikely.
“True, free bus passes were announced in the budget but we have not got permission from the Finance Department. It was supposed to cover 19 lakh students and the cost on all four corporations was to be around Rs 600 crore a year. That’s big money and we need government help. I have written to the chief minister. He has to take a call,” B Basavaraju, principal secretary of the Transport Department, told ET.
Until the last academic year, the scheme was applicable to only Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) students. After certain sections of society raised objections, the then chief minister Siddaramaiah, during his election-year Budget, extended it to all.
“Transport expenses should not be a hindrance for students travelling to far-off schools and colleges,” Siddaramaiah had said during his February 2018 Budget speech.
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While free passes continue for SC/ST students, other students are eligible for a concessional pass. The cost of a concessional pass varies depending on which class the student is in. While it is free for students up to 7th standard, others pay anywhere between ?900 and ?1,200 per year.
According to the existing scheme, the government subsidises 50% of the cost of each student pass to the respective corporation. The transport corporation and the student bear 25% each. In the 2017-18 academic year, 18.29 lakh students purchased these passes.
