Attingal: The demand for shifting the private bus stand from its present position to Mamom (where a cattle market is now situated), which is about one kilometer away, has a long history. Actually a decision was made by municipal authorities to shift the bus stand some years ago. But the actual shifting did not take place owing to a court case and lack of cooperation from bus owners. Now, with the traffic reforms in Attingal courting controversy after controversy, the demand for shifting the bus stand has gained considerable momentum.
However, there are several hurdles for the actual shifting to take place. Apart from the obvious ones like non-cooperation of private bus owners and protests from the influential merchants running shops around private bus stand, there is a court case also on this issue. A member of the erstwhile royal family of Attingal queen filed a case against shifting the bus stand to Mamom. One must remember that the place had been owned by the royal family. The land was given to municipality for running a cattle market. Now, the member of the royal family who filed the case put forward a not-so-royal argument that the place was given to municipality for running a cattle market only and should not be used for any other purposes like bus stand. For him, four-legged creatures are welcome, but not four-wheelers. It is said that the case was filed under the influence of some businessmen who are against the shifting of the bus stand.
Even if the authorities find a way to jump over these hurdles, there is another stumbling block that takes some effort to overcome. Most of the buses plying in Attingal do not have ‘halt’ in Attingal. For those buses, Attingal is an intermediate place where they stop for one or two minutes. For example, there are a lot of buses going to Varkkala or Kilimanoor from Chirayinkil or Venjaramoodu. Such buses stop at Attingal only for a few minutes. So if the bus stand is shifted to Mamom, it will take a few more minutes for the buses to reach the bus stand. In a rough estimate, it will take at least four more minutes. Most buses now do not have four minutes at present to spare. Naturally it will disrupt the entire timing of buses in Chirayinkil taluk. There are buses which go to Kollam and Punaloor, which makes the matters worse. Even now, the quarrels between crew of the buses are a frequent occurring in bus stand. Most of the bus conductors are very possessive about the timings. When a conductor finds the bus just in front of his bus is a few seconds late, he reacts like a Hindi film hero of eighties who just heard that his sister was raped by the villain. Jokes apart, if the bus stand is shifted to Mamom, the timings of the buses in Chirayinkil taluk and nearby areas have to be re-arranged. It will require another lengthy RTA meeting and possibly several court cases. So at the present scenario the chances of shifting of bus stand look bleak, though not impossible.
However, there are several hurdles for the actual shifting to take place. Apart from the obvious ones like non-cooperation of private bus owners and protests from the influential merchants running shops around private bus stand, there is a court case also on this issue. A member of the erstwhile royal family of Attingal queen filed a case against shifting the bus stand to Mamom. One must remember that the place had been owned by the royal family. The land was given to municipality for running a cattle market. Now, the member of the royal family who filed the case put forward a not-so-royal argument that the place was given to municipality for running a cattle market only and should not be used for any other purposes like bus stand. For him, four-legged creatures are welcome, but not four-wheelers. It is said that the case was filed under the influence of some businessmen who are against the shifting of the bus stand.
Even if the authorities find a way to jump over these hurdles, there is another stumbling block that takes some effort to overcome. Most of the buses plying in Attingal do not have ‘halt’ in Attingal. For those buses, Attingal is an intermediate place where they stop for one or two minutes. For example, there are a lot of buses going to Varkkala or Kilimanoor from Chirayinkil or Venjaramoodu. Such buses stop at Attingal only for a few minutes. So if the bus stand is shifted to Mamom, it will take a few more minutes for the buses to reach the bus stand. In a rough estimate, it will take at least four more minutes. Most buses now do not have four minutes at present to spare. Naturally it will disrupt the entire timing of buses in Chirayinkil taluk. There are buses which go to Kollam and Punaloor, which makes the matters worse. Even now, the quarrels between crew of the buses are a frequent occurring in bus stand. Most of the bus conductors are very possessive about the timings. When a conductor finds the bus just in front of his bus is a few seconds late, he reacts like a Hindi film hero of eighties who just heard that his sister was raped by the villain. Jokes apart, if the bus stand is shifted to Mamom, the timings of the buses in Chirayinkil taluk and nearby areas have to be re-arranged. It will require another lengthy RTA meeting and possibly several court cases. So at the present scenario the chances of shifting of bus stand look bleak, though not impossible.
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