For 2nd day, interstate bus services suspended

Interstate bus services between Karnataka and Maharashtra remained suspended for the second day in a row on Sunday as protests continued over the ongoing dispute over language in the border district of Belagavi.

- Hirekop Rajan Samuel

BELAGAVI:

Belagavi divisional controller Rajesh Potdar said that Karnataka state transport buses to Maharashtra have been halted due to the "volatile situation". The Belagavi division - which operates around 120 buses daily from Nippani, Chikkodi, and Athani - have suspended services to the neighbouring state since Saturday afternoon.

"To minimize inconvenience for passengers, we are operating buses only up to the state border," he said. "From there, commuters are boarding Maharashtra state buses to continue their journey."

Maharashtra transport minister Pratap Sarnaik ordered the suspension of state transport buses to Karnataka on Saturday. The move came hours after a bus driver of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC), identified as Bhaskar Jadhav, was allegedly attacked and his face was blackened by miscreants.

Almost all private bus operations between the two states as well as the neighbouring ones have come to a halt over fears of the tensions simmering in the border areas of both states," Mumbai Bus Malak Sangathana vice chairman Mumbai Bus Malak Sangathana said. Around 250 MSRTC and 500 private bus services operating between the two states have been stopped.