Posted by Bengaluru:In the very civilised human society, the birds which are actually meant to fly in the open sky are not just commuting with the bus, but are also ironically paying for tickets. It has been reported that the state owned Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) charged Rs 444 for four parrots for transporting from Bengaluru to Mysuru. The whopping ticket price went viral on social media on Wednesday.
The post originally tweeted in Telgu reads – “A woman traveled with her granddaughter from Bangalore to Mysore by bus. Brought along 4 parrots. As part of the ‘Shakti’ scheme, the conductor gave them a free ticket but treated the parrots as children and charged them ₹444.”
Woman allowed to travel for free
Meanwhile, as per the government officials, an elderly woman travelling from Bengaluru to Mysore with four caged parrots at around 8 am on Wednesday.
Notably, the old woman and her grand daughter received complimentary tickets through the Shakti Yojana, however, the four parrots have been issued tickets priced at Rs 444, amounting to Rs 111 per ticket. Passengers have also captured and shared a heartwarming scene of a grandmother and granddaughter seated amidst the bus, accompanied by the birds.
Four parrots classified as four children by the conductor
In accordance with KSRTC regulations, the grandmother and granddaughter were classified as adults and were granted complimentary travel tickets by the conductor under the Shakti Yojana. Meanwhile, the lovebirds were categorised as ‘children,’ warranting a ticket priced at Rs 444.
However, KSRTC mandates that passengers purchase half tickets for the pets and birds they bring along. Those passengers who fail to acquire tickets under this provision may face a fine amounting to 10 percent of the ticket price for their journey.
Conductor might face suspension followed by criminal charges
After the social media post went viral online, the state owned transport department officials cautioned that failure on the conductor’s part to issue half tickets could lead to potential criminal charges and the suspension of the conductor for misappropriation of KSRTC funds.