After giving the full amount for the BMTC ticket you will have to ask “Ticket kodi sir” – “please give me ticket sir.” I have seen many conductors taking cash and if the commuter is travelling for short distance, they just don’t give the ticket.
What happens if you give money and not take ticket?
This incident happened in BMTC Shanti Nagar Bus Depot. Last year, I used to go for weekend trips and manage to reach Bangalore either Sunday night or Monday early morning. One day, I was comfortably seated in a bus at Majestic. The bus was fully packed and many people were getting down and others got out from the bus at each bus stop.
When the bus reached Double Road, a commuter said, “One Dairy Circle” and gave the money. Then he asked: “Bhayya ticket nahi diya!” – “brother you didn’t give me the ticket!” The conductor told him to excuse for a minute and got down from the bus. He entered the bus from the front door and started issuing tickets.
As soon as the bus entered Shanti Nagar Depot, two ticket checking inspectors entered – one from the front door and the other from back door. They found the guy without ticket, who said, “Hum ne conductor se ticket pucha tha” – but the inspector wasn’t ready to hear anything. He said it is the duty of commuters to get the ticket once they pay for the ticket. He brought him to the notice of the main ticket checker.
The ticket checker asked the conductor whether he did not issue the ticket to him, but the conductor said he doesn’t know about this guy, and he issues tickets immediately to whoever pays him.
Then the inspector asked that the bus be stopped. He called the guy, and asked him to pay the fine, and threatened to take him to the main ticket chekcer where he’ll have to pay more as fine.
However, the boy pleaded not guilty. It was then that a senior citizen came n support of the boy. He said that he had seen the boy paying to the conductor, and the conductor did not issue a ticket. Many other sin the bus supported the boy.
Now the inspector asked the conductor to give him the ticket, and said it was the duty of commuters to take the ticket and pay for the same. Not a word of sorry, no regrets. Not from the conductor, not from the ticket checker inspectors.
No complaints, no redressal
I usually give Rs 5 to the conductor, when I get in at Roopena Agrahara and get down at Madiwala Silk Board stop. The conductor never issues the ticket. This morning, when I returned to Bangalore from a trip, the inter-city bus dropped me near St Johns Bus stop and I caught a bus to Roopena Agrahara. Normally the fare is Rs 10 or 11, but today, the conductor took just Rs 7. The time was 5.55 am (Tuesday Feb 11, 2014) and Bus number KA 01 F 2591.
I asked the conductor to give me the ticket, he gestured me to wait. When the bus reached Krupanidhi College signal, I asked again. But the conductor pretended to be busy with his work.
When the bus reached Madiwala, I again asked the conductor “Ticket kodi sir” – he again gestured me to wait. When Roopena Agrahara came, he was acting as if he was busy collecting tickets – I had to get down from the bus without ticket.
I have seen many BMTC ads and even the BMTC website mybmtc.com – but never found any contact number for complaint in the bus and in website. When I search about “BMTC conductor not giving tickets,” there many consumer complaints and even forums to discuss “how bus conductors loot BMTC”.
There should be an initative by BMTC to enable commuters to complain when BMTC buses do not operate according to the schedule, the drivers do not stop at the bus stops, and the conductors do not issue tickets etc. There must be some unique complaint number to check the status of the complaint and action taken by BMTC.
This is a common practice among conductors. I did enquire once with conductor on this , He was good enough to tell me that he had got the JOB by bribing the officers and for that he had taken a loan from a person in his native , To repay the loan , he needed additional income , which he is earning by not giving tickets. this is common in the buses that go to Atibele and Jigini. Corruption starts from the recruitment stage itself. some people who are not able to get money this way even do double shifts and risk the lives of passengers.
I too faced a similar issue last week. I was travelling from Chikkalasandra to Netkallapa circle for which it costs 15 Rs. I gave the conductor 20 rupees note. He gave me the ticket for 15 Rs and told that he would give the change of 5Rs later. When the bus stop where I had to get down approached, he got into the rear part of the bus. Since there were hardly any people in the bus, I followed him there too .Finally he budged and gave me 5 Rs , but he took my ticket!
I’ve seen conductors taking back issued tickets from commuters and issuing it again to someone else.
I faced the same issue couple of weeks back while travelling from Jigani ,the conductor did issue me a ticket but of lower value , I had paid rs 12 and the ticket was for Rs10.After bugging him he returned Rs2 .After getting down I took the Bus number and registered a complaint with BMTC.The very next day I got an email with apology and it has been sent to the concerned Depot for necessary action.
This is a common practice among conductors in VOLVO buses. I also have seen youngsters give some money and not ask for ticket and conductor is putting money to his packet. When I ask both passenger and conductor to do ticketing process, both of them behave as if the mistake is done by me.
Very common between Marathahalli and HyperCity on ITPL Road.
It was a short outing to Bannerghatta National Park yesterday, when I saw the conductor on 365 route number, Volvo bus (around 1.00pm when we reached the park) deliberately asking a group of teenagers to pay just Rs. 50/- instead of 70/- and not ask for the ticket.
The girls giggled and though surprised left it at that. When I asked the girls and the conductor why there is no ticket, the conductor stared to give me the message ‘mind your business’. I hope the BMTC has CCTV’s beginning with Volvo buses to check on unnecessary corruption and avoid teaching the young to learn with ‘living in a corrupted society’.
Some routes are notorious for such acts of conductors. Now, these conductors have returned to their bag of tricks as they did in the late 1980s. So, here is the number of the senior authority whom i once contacted and he initiated an enquiry, promptly followed it up with action and the conductor was shunted out of that route. BMTC even gives you a ticket number for your escalation and is needed to act upon it. Anyway, here is the number, in case you need to escalate. But have the ticket and the timings of the travel ready….Mobile number of the senior in-charge is 77609-91155
Date of travel : 22 August 2014
Time of alighting: 1:15 pm
Bus route no.: 314M
Bus Registration no.: KA01 F-9444
Bus color: Red, Bharat IV written on it
Distance travelled: From opposite Dell office to KFC signal at CMH road.
Issue: Conductor initially took only 8 Rs. On demanding ticket, he ignored at first. On insisting he took full 12 Rs and issued only 6 Rs ticket. Acted very rudely and almost threatening to harm.
I boarded in a bus near Mysore bank circle to get down at Palace Guttahalli. The bus ply via majestic. The bus conductor was busy at the rear end of the bus he did not come front for a single time. Mean time before Majestic the Ticket checker entered the bus and found me with no ticket. He refused to listen that bus conductor didn’t turned up at front. How is it possible for ladies to go rear end and take ticket. I was forced to pay fine Rs 500/- for the negligence of the ticket conductor.