Court gives transport dept a week to consult with transporters
Seeks report on inter-provincial transport ban, dept initiates action against violators
A Reuters file image.
KARACHI:
The Sindh High Court gave the provincial transport minister a week's time to consult with the transporters and resolve the matter of inter-provincial public transport.
A two-member bench, comprising Justice Omar Sial and Justice Zulfiqar Ali Sangi, was hearing the plea seeking removal of the ban on inter-provincial transport in Sindh.
The provincial Deputy Advocate-General informed the court that standard operating procedures (SOPs) for buses have been prepared, and the lifting of the ban is conditional upon adherence with the SOPs. Buses would be permitted to operate from the official bus terminals with implementation on SOPs, he said.
The counsel added that each bus that meets the condition would be issued a certificate by the motorway authorities, the transport department, and health inspectors and these certificates would be checked at the Toll Plaza.
The bench directed Sindh Transport and Mass Transit Minister Awais Qadir Shah to hold consultations with the transporters and resolve the matter within a week. Action against violations
Separately, according to a notification issued by the Sindh transport and mass transit department on Tuesday, the department has taken notice of the violation of inter-district and inter-provincial public transport ban. Subsequently, the department has begun cancelling route permits of buses operating on inter-city routes.
According to the notification, only intra-city public transport has been permitted to operate in the province as of yet, and the ban on inter-district and inter-provincial transport remains. However, buses have been operating in violation of the ban from Kathore Bus Stop.
The department has constituted separate seven-member committees for each district - headed by the relevant assistant commissioner, which will act against violators of the ban.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 17th, 2020.
The Sindh High Court gave the provincial transport minister a week's time to consult with the transporters and resolve the matter of inter-provincial public transport.
A two-member bench, comprising Justice Omar Sial and Justice Zulfiqar Ali Sangi, was hearing the plea seeking removal of the ban on inter-provincial transport in Sindh.
The provincial Deputy Advocate-General informed the court that standard operating procedures (SOPs) for buses have been prepared, and the lifting of the ban is conditional upon adherence with the SOPs. Buses would be permitted to operate from the official bus terminals with implementation on SOPs, he said.
The counsel added that each bus that meets the condition would be issued a certificate by the motorway authorities, the transport department, and health inspectors and these certificates would be checked at the Toll Plaza.
The bench directed Sindh Transport and Mass Transit Minister Awais Qadir Shah to hold consultations with the transporters and resolve the matter within a week. Action against violations
Separately, according to a notification issued by the Sindh transport and mass transit department on Tuesday, the department has taken notice of the violation of inter-district and inter-provincial public transport ban. Subsequently, the department has begun cancelling route permits of buses operating on inter-city routes.
According to the notification, only intra-city public transport has been permitted to operate in the province as of yet, and the ban on inter-district and inter-provincial transport remains. However, buses have been operating in violation of the ban from Kathore Bus Stop.
The department has constituted separate seven-member committees for each district - headed by the relevant assistant commissioner, which will act against violators of the ban.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 17th, 2020.