Team News Riveting
Kochi, December 13
The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has approached the Supreme Court challenging an order of the Kerala High Court that directed the officers of the Motor Vehicles Department and the State Police to take action against state-run corporation’s vehicles exhibiting advertisements.
The Kerala High Court in October had passed an order citing that the advertisements on the buses were causing undue distraction to pededstrians and other drivers. The order was passed by a division bench on the suo motu proceedings initiated by it in the wake of the Vadakkencherry bus accident in which nine persons, including five school children died while over 40 persons were injured.
The High Court bench had noted that affixing such ads on the bodies of vehicles causes undue distractions to pedestrians and other drivers, and violates the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act and Rules. However, the KSRTC in its appeal said that the High Court erred in attributing its own findings to a matter which pertains to public safety and policy, without any authentic supporting material.
“In all the major cities buses are carrying advertisements in its body and all over the world public and private buses carrying different types of pictures or inscriptions in the body of the buses. There is no scientific data available to show that advertisement in the body of the bus creates distraction to the pedestrians, cyclists and drivers of other buses, no experts conducted any study or submitted any report before the Hon’ble High Court in this regard,” the KSRTC said in the appeal .
It was contended that the advertisements on its vehicles have been approved by the State government and generate approximately Rs 1.5 crore per month, which in turn helps the public to travel at nominal fares.
