Parents of children attending schools in private school buses complain that several private school bus drivers are insisting on fares for months that schools were not held.
Several parents claim that bus drivers countrywide are threatening insisting on parents and their children not to get into buses unless they pay fares for April and May even though schools were not held in these months, due to the Coronavirus threat.
Parents said this was an injustice to them as they did not receive the transport service during this period.The government has also granted a financial concession on leasing following a meeting private school bus owners held with Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in July. Accordingly no leasing installment is charged for six months from school buses, the parents said.
The parents urge the government to intervene in this matter as it is a huge burden for them affected by the Coronavirus pandemic. Inter-District School Bus Operators Association Coordinating Secretary S.M.Konagedara said their association had not taken any decision to charge bus fares for April. However, schools were held for two weeks in March and therefore parents are duty bound to pay at least a half of the fare for March, he said.
Speaking on the financial assistance granted by the government, Konagedara said that leasing and finance companies are not ready to grant that financial concession as they have not been informed by the Finance Ministry.
“Finance Companies stress that they can’t offer that concession unless they receive the relevant circular from the Central Bank or the Finance Ministry,” he added.
