Sambalpur: After a long wait, the newly built bus stand at Jharsuguda town was finally inaugurated July 9 and put into public use. This had spread cheers among the commuters, auto-rickshaw drivers as well as small and marginal traders dependent on the bus stand for their livelihood.
However, their happiness was short-lived as the agency managing the bus stand has been reportedly fleecing the users since its inauguration. The new bus stand having all the modern facilities and amenities for the benefit of the commuters was constructed with Rs 20 crore funds sanctioned from the district mineral foundation (DMF). Soon after the inauguration, a private consultancy agency ‘Aryabhatt Computer’ was given the responsibility to manage the bus stand.
However, locals allege that the private agency has been demanding security money from the traders for the allotment of shops and kiosks and charging heavy parking fees from auto-rickshaws and other vehicles if they enter the bus stand premises. The agency is even denying entry to auto-rickshaws carrying passengers and two-wheeler riders who are going to drop their kin at the bus stand. It is charging heavy fees from them if they want to gain entry into the bus stand premises. Demand for heavy parking fees from the auto-rickshaw drivers and two-wheeler riders is often leading to face-off between the agency employees and the users but the former refuses to pay any heed. This has sparked sharp resentment among the residents with many lodging complaints before the district administration and regional transport officer (RTO).
However, their pleas are yet to be addressed. Reports said that the consultancy agency had signed an agreement with the district administration for the management of the newly built stand. However, it is reportedly violating the conditions as laid out in the contract. It was apparently decided that retail traders who had their shops on the old bus stand premises would be given first priority in the allotment of shops and kiosks in the new bus stand. However, this never happened and hundreds of vendors and traders lost their livelihood. The agency is denying entry to outside vehicles inside the bus stand due to which senior citizens, pregnant women, and children are facing a harrowing time to board their buses.
Locals have demanded the administration intervene and look into their demands as the agency is overlooking their problems and fleecing them of money. A tea stall owner Raju Meher said that he had a stall at the old bus stand and was earning Rs 500 to Rs 700 daily. He was hoping to set up a permanent tea stall after the establishment of the new bus stand but the agency is demanding Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5 lakh as a security deposit and Rs 10,000 as rent for the allotment of a kiosk which is difficult for him to do. He questioned how much he would earn from a small tea stall that he would be able to pay the security deposit and rent after setting aside money to meet his family’s expenses and keep his business running. He demanded the administration resolve the problems of small vendors like him. When contacted, agency official Swatantra Kumar said the two-wheeler riders have been exempted from payment of parking fees while other vehicles are being charged as per government approved rate. Stalls have been allocated to the traders of old bus stands while some have been left out. The left out will be allotted stalls as per norms. A nominal fee is being charged as a security deposit while the security money has been relaxed in many cases. The rest of the problems will be resolved soon, he added.
