Tripura govt imposes restrictions on pvt vehicles

Agartala, Oct 16 (UNI) Following the death of seven labourers from Jharkhand, Tripura government has imposed strict restrictions on private vehicles transporting passengers above their capacity.

Recently, seven labourers, who came to work here from Jharkhand, died due to suffocation and dehydration on board overcrowded Guwahati-Agartala buses.

Official sources here today said, traffic authorities and the State Transport department were asked to inspect private vehicles and ensure the travellers' safety and comfort.

Meanwhile, the state human rights organisations had demanded compensation for the victims' families, while urging the government to initiate action against the accused persons, who had brought the labourers from Jharkhand, violating the Inter-state Migrant Worksmen (Regulation of Employment and Condition of Service) Act, 1979, norms.

A number of NGOs had also raised their voice against the overloading of passengers and absence of customer services in vehicles plying across the state and outside while demanding assurance of travellers' safety from the State government.

They criticised the State government for its reluctance in regulating passenger services and transportation rules.

''Despite repeated suggestions from the Comptroller and Auditor General(CAG) for introducing separate laws to check overcrowding of buses on highways and major roads, the state government has failed to address the issue,'' the NGOs alleged.

The Tripura-bound buses had been carrying between 70 - 80 passengers, despite their capacity being limited to 35, the NGOs maintained.

The NGOs came down heavily on the political parties of the state and said, nothing was being done to stop the occurrence of such 'inhuman incidents'.

UNI