MANY of us have travelled through university buses, commonly known as points. Students who travel through these buses face a number of issues that are hardly ever discussed. Lack of capacity is the biggest problem of all. Every day, university point buses move while being overloaded with students. Hoping to get a seat on the bus is like dreaming with one’s eyes wide open. Many students do not get enough space to even stand properly. For many, the commute is as unsafe as it can be.
Moreover, these buses often break down anywhere on the route due to technical faults. A lot of precious time is thus wasted, and the students get late for their classes. While the students wait impatiently for the bus to start, the drivers wander around carefree. They conveniently ignore students’ pleas to resume the journey. Due to all these problems, students prefer to live in hostels to save themselves from the daily hassles related to commuting through point buses.
The intention here is not to discourage students from using these buses, but to encourage them to speak up against this adversity that we, the commuters, face on a daily basis. I believe that we can bring about changes if we speak out and do whatever it takes to get things moving.
Ariba Ali
Hyderabad
Published in Dawn, August 6th, 2022
