Kallada Tours and Travels operator to pay Rs 10000 for travel in damaged bus

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Thrissur Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has ordered Kallada Tours and Travels to pay Rs 10,000 as compensation to a couple who was made to travel in a bus with a broken windshield. As per the complaint filed by Rajith Raj and Soory Sree of Chiyyaram, Thrissur, they booked a ticket from Hyderabad to Thrissur. On January 18, 2014, 2pm they boarded a Karnataka registration bus which reached Bengaluru at midnight. They were asked to get down and board another bus with Kerala registration.

However, the bus was in poor condition and all the travellers including the couple were hesitant to travel in it as the windshield was broken. They were made to wait until 4.30am on the road. Finally they were forced to take the bus which reached Mannuthy, Thrissur by 3pm on January 19. The bus was around four hours late. The couple approached the consumer forum citing that the experience caused mental agony and physical strain.

The travels company informed the forum that due to mechanical trouble, the air pressure inside the Volvo bus changed drastically cracking the glass. They also claimed that an alternate bus was again provided to passengers from Hosur. The events were described as an ‘Act of God’. However, the couple maintained that they were provided a faulty bus. The company was not able to provide evidence that the bus developed a snag during the journey. The forum rapped the company for not maintaining a good quality alternative in the event of a breakdown and ordered compensation.