The Kozhikode district committee of the Contract Carriage Operators Association, an organisation representing tourist vehicle operators, has sought more time to comply with the uniform colour code norm.
Members of the association will stage a sit-in outside the zonal office of the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) at the Kozhikode collectorate on Thursday in support of their various demands, president M. Rafeeq and secretary K.P. Sreesanth told the media on Wednesday.
They alleged that MVD officials were found to have been randomly inspecting vehicles after the Vadakkenchery accident and imposing fines on operators. They admitted that some operators might have flouted rules. But punishing all of them will not solve the problem.
The colour code mandates that the vehicles should be painted in white with a 10-cm-wide violet ribbon and a 3-cm-wide metallic gold ribbon above it at the centre of the exterior of the side body. Earlier, the operators were given time till the next inspection of the vehicle for fitness certificate to enforce the code. In the wake of the High Court order following the accident, the authorities, however, have strengthened enforcement of the rule.
There are around 3,000 contract carriages in Kozhikode district, of which around 600 are buses.
The association functionaries claimed that repainting of such a large number of vehicles would not be practically possible in such a short span of time. Mr. Sreesanth and Mr. Rafeeq said they should be given at least three months to comply with the colour code.
