Murtaza Ali

Khanda: The residents of Khanda Kanipora area of central Kashmir’s Budgam have accused transport department of failing to enforce Government prescribed passenger fare charges.

The commuters complain that in absence of the proper monitoring mechanism by traffic police the common man is forced to pay extra fare according to the ‘own will’ of sumo drivers.

“Earlier we used to pay 30 rupees for the 13-kilometer distance, when it was only 26 rupees as per fair list  but now the drivers charge us 35 rupees for the same distance,” Mohsin, a college student said.

A group of students told The Kashmir Press that they have already raised this issue with traffic administration many times but later has failed to implement any action on ground.

Parvaiz Ahmad a resident of Khanda told that “the sumo drivers board ten passengers while the government permits them only of nine.” He also added “When someone argues with them they misbehave and sometimes use abusive language.”

Reacting on this, SSP traffic Tahir Geelani said, the department has got a large number of complaints regarding the overcharging and overloading in “Sumos”.

“We are monitoring the vehicles regularly but I also request the people to cooperate with us by reporting to traffic police whenever they face inconvenience,” Geelani said.