Sr citizens scramble for BEST seats

As if it weren’t enough that senior citizens had to wrangle with male co-passengers over reserved seats in BEST buses, they now have to contend with the ‘weaker’ sex as well.

DNA reader Cyrush Dubash faces the problem on a daily basis. Writing to DNA Fix-it, he says: “I travel daily from Churchgate to Colaba and back. There is no problem in the mornings, but the ordeal begins when I’m returning. The bus service from Colaba to Churchgate between 6 and 6.30pm is erratic. Bus numbers 106, 123 and 6 take ages to arrive, and sometimes, two of them come together. Also, the buses are packed to capacity. Sometimes senior citizens like me are unable to board even from the front entrance.”

He continues: “To add to the trouble, nine out of 10 times, women, girls occupy these seats. I possess a senior citizen’s bus pass, but the women do not even vacate the seats meant for senior citizens. They come up with flimsy excuses such as they’re getting a good breeze (if it is morning) or the sun is directly on the ladies’ seats (if it is afternoon or early evening). Moreover, the seats meant for the handicapped are also occupied by them.”

KR Parmeshwar, a resident of Borivli, concurs, “The problem is extremely severe during the day when sunlight is entering the bus from the right side, where all the women’s reserved seats are. They complain that it is hot on that side, and thus they have to use the seats reserved for us.

As if we won’t be adversely affected by the heat! In fact, when we ask the conductors to intervene, they claim it is not their responsibility. Now, if a conductor does not ensure that the reserved seats are claimed by the right passengers, who will?”

Transport analyst Ashok Datar, himself a senior citizen who has also faced this problem, says, “It is true that this problem exists, but we should not make such a big issue out of it. The women also have genuine woes. During rush hours when the bus is overcrowded, for example, they are frequently molested. They don’t like to bring up this issue, and so they stubbornly occupy senior citizens’ seats.”

In mid-2010, BEST had increased the number of reserved seats in its buses. For senior citizens, the two seats were increased to four, and for women, the six were increased to twelve. However, that does not seem to have helped.

BEST committee chairman Sunil Shinde said he would ask the concerned officials to look into the matter, and ensure the conductors intervene so that the seniors get what is rightfully theirs.