CHENNAI: The state transport department has directed regional transport offices and zonal offices to intensify checking in private buses and minibuses for excess fare collection and maintain history sheets of the operators.
The instruction has been issued based on an order issued by Madras High Court.
In a circular, Transport Commissioner A Shanmuga Sundaram instructed all the zonal officers-joint transport commissioners/deputy transport commissioners/ regional transport officers/ motor vehicles inspectors including enforcement wings, unit offices and check posts in Tamil Nadu to intensify the checking in respect of excess fare collections being habitually collected by the erring operators of stage carriages (private buses plying in districts) and minibuses in Tamil Nadu.
Officers have also been directed to take severe and coercive action against such excess fare collections, according to section 86(1) of Motor Vehicles Act, 1998 "with a view to put an end to the menace of excess fare collections in Tamil Nadu, most seriously."
In addition, all the regional transport officers are instructed to maintain a History Sheet for stage carriages and minibuses and ensure that all entries relating to disciplinary actions taken against the operators and any of transactions allowed are updated in the History Sheet of the operator concerned.
As per the circular, History Sheets should be updated for all stage carriages and minibuses since inception by all the regional transport officers. Zonal officers should ensure that the regional transport officers under their control have updated History Sheets.
"If any lapses/non-compliance is noticed, the Zonal officers and regional transport officers concerned will be held responsible for such lapse and will be proceeded against, accordingly," the circular warned.