Team News Riveting
Kochi, February 12
It may sound strange, but a bus owner in Kerala has offered to sell his vehicles for Rs 45 per kg.
Failing to revive his financial condition that was badly hot by COVID pandemic, the owner of Roy Tourism in Ernakulam (Kerala), Royson Joseph announced that he would be selling his buses for Rs 45 per kg as scrap. The Contract Carriage Operators Association Kerala (CCOA), the association of tourist bus owners, has shared the Facebook post of Joseph making the outlandish announcement.
Joseph has already sold 10 of the 20 buses he had in the last 12-18 months, post-pandemic. He said the business had been badly disrupted due to the COVID pandemic and it was difficult to survive.
Joseph said, “It is difficult to live. We need to pay the financiers and loans. It’s not just me; there are many. I have no option rather than to sell my buses as scrap to repay the loans.”
He explained that after paying Rs 40,000 tax and Rs 75,000 as insurance, the buses come on the road. After all other expenses, including maintenance and salary of employees, it is difficult for the owner to survive. “The bus owners were promised help. However, there is no relief by the govt side and the banks,” Joseph said, adding that he was ready to sell his buses to anyone paying him Rs 45 per kg to repay his loans.
Binu John, CCOA state president, said the number of tourist buses in Kerala had dropped from 14,000 to less than 12,000 due to the money lenders seizing some of them after the operators defaulted on payments. He said that banks or money lenders have attached over 1,000 buses in the last two months alone.
Binu added the exact number could be traced after March. They fear more than 2,000 to 3,000 tourist buses will be attached by the banker and money lenders by next month or so. The constant changing Covid travel rules in the state is the major problem.
