HUBBALLI: Rain often exposes the shoddy work of engineers who construct roads, bridges and buildings. But in Hubballi, it has also exposed the failure of the North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) to maintain its fleet of buses. Rain water leaks through the roof and windows of buses and this has forced commuters to travel with umbrellas open. With water pouring through the windows, many commuters prefer to stand through the journey rather than take a window seat.Ravindra Jalaraddi, proprietor of an advertising agency, told TOI: “NWKRTC never prepares for the rainy season and commuters have to bear with it.”Geeta J, a bank employee who travels daily between Gadag and Hubballi, claimed most buses have windows that leak. “We can neither sit nor stand since the roofs also leak,” she said. “Many crew members say NWKRTC officials repair buses when they receive a complaint from the public. They should take into account feedback of drivers and conductors rather than wait for complaints from commuters.”Some conductors, attached to the Hubballi division expressed helplessness. “When we bring it to the notice of our higher officials, they say we are blowing up the issue. Passengers blame us but never file complaints.”Shantesh Goudar, a teacher from Navanagar, said he had taken a photograph of passengers using umbrellas in buses and sent it to NWKRTC’s Whatsapp number last week. “My message has been seen, but they haven’t given any information on action taken,” he said.Sangamesh Olekar, a cloth vendor in Kalghatgi, said the situation is worse in rural buses. “I travel to various places to sell clothes,” he said. “The buses on long routes or prime routes like Belagavi, Gadag, Haveri, Bengaluru and Vijayapura are okay. City and non-prime buses are bad. Many times, our luggage is drenched by the time we get down. Even when the rain stops, the buses continue leaking water for many hours.”Fixing the problemMinor repairs will take place at divisional workshops. We had brought 207 buses from eight divisions to the regional workshop for major repairs. This year, we plan to bring around 700 buses. Many buses have already completed 8-9 lakh km and their roofing mat has to be changed. Window glasses should be refitted with sealant gum. We’ll direct divisional workshops to repair roofs and refit window glasses in two or three days.PR Mahajan | chief mechanical engineer, NWKRTC, Hubballi

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