Kerala tourist buses suspend services to Karnataka, Tamil Nadu
Kochi (PTI): The Luxury Bus Owners Association on Sunday announced that they will suspend all interstate services from Kerala to Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
In a statement, the Luxury Bus Owners Association, Kerala State Committee said that interstate tourist bus services from Kerala to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka will be suspended from 6 pm, Monday.
Association State President AJ Rijas said the decision was taken after neighbouring states began levying heavy fines, imposing unlawful state-level taxes, and seizing All India Tourist Permit (AITP) buses belonging to Kerala operators.
General Secretary Maneesh Sasidharan said that despite having valid AITPs issued under the Central Government’s Motor Vehicles Act, tourist vehicles from Kerala are being stopped, fined, and detained in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
“For over a year, Tamil Nadu authorities have been collecting tax arbitrarily from Kerala-registered vehicles, causing repeated harassment to operators and passengers. During this period, the Kerala government had taken a very sympathetic and supportive approach, refraining from retaliatory measures in the hope of a cooperative resolution,” the association said.
Many are now afraid to operate interstate services due to the threat of financial loss and vehicle seizure, they said.
The association clarified that this service suspension is not a voluntary protest, but a compelled action taken for the safety of vehicles, drivers, and passengers.
The association has requested the Kerala Transport Minister and the Transport Commissioner to intervene immediately with the Governments of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, to put an end to these unlawful practices and to ensure uniform implementation of the AITP framework across all southern states.
The association has also written a letter to Kerala Transport Minister KB Ganesh Kumar to address the issue.
“With timely intervention from the Kerala government and the central authorities, the issue can be resolved amicably and normal interstate tourist operations can resume soon,” the association added.
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Odisha: Normalcy returns to violence-hit Malkangiri; internet services fully restored
Malkangiri (PTI): Normalcy returned to Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Monday, nearly a week after around 200 villages were damaged in violent clashes in a village, with the district administration fully restoring internet services, a senior official said.
Additional District Magistrate Bedabar Pradhan said internet services, suspended across the district on December 8 to curb the spread of rumours and misinformation following the clashes, were restored after the situation improved.
The suspension had been extended in phases till 12 noon on Monday.
The administration also withdrew prohibitory orders imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita within a 10-km radius of MV-26 village, where arson incidents were reported on December 7 and December 8.
Though the violence was confined to two villages, tension had gripped the entire district, as the incident took the form of a clash between local tribals and Bengali settlers following the recovery of a headless body of a woman on December 4, officials said.
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The violence broke out after residents of Rakhelguda village allegedly set ablaze several houses belonging to Bengali residents, forcing hundreds to flee. The headless body of Lake Podiami (51), a woman from the Koya tribe, was recovered from the banks of the Poteru river on December 4, while her head was found six days later at a location about 15 km away.
Officials said the district administration held several rounds of discussions with representatives of the tribal and Bengali communities, following which both sides agreed to maintain peace.
Relief and rehabilitation work has since been launched at MV-26 village, with preliminary assessment pegging property damage at around Rs 3.8 crore.
A two-member ministerial team headed by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo visited the affected village, interacted with officials and locals, and submitted a report to the chief minister.
So far, 18 people have been arrested in connection with the violence, the officials said, adding that despite the withdrawal of prohibitory orders and restoration of internet services, security forces, including BSF and CRPF personnel, continue to be deployed to prevent any untoward incident.
On Sunday, Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi visited MV-26 and neighbouring Rakhelguda villages, and held discussions with members of both communities as part of efforts to rebuild confidence and restore peace.
More than two lakh Bengali-speaking Bangladeshis were rehabilitated by the Centre in Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts in 1968, and they currently reside in 124 villages of Malkangiri.
