Ghaziabad: Traffic police have seized 235 private buses with tinted windows, curtains or other coverings that obstruct visibility into passenger compartments across Noida in the past two days following the rape of a 17-year-old girl in a moving bus. The transport departments have started checks on private tourist buses in Noida and Ghaziabad.There were checks conducted on Wednesday at several border areas between Delhi and Noida, including Chilla Border and Jhundpura in Sector 11. Several female police officers were seen instructing commuters to not get on empty buses or buses with no female commuters in them. Such checks are also being conducted at Pari Chowk, Sector 14A, Model Town and near Lal Kuan, among others.On Aug 4, the girl sought a lift from a sleeper bus at Pari Chowk. A probe by Delhi Police revealed that she was raped first by the conductor near Bakhtawarpur Village (Noida Sector 127-128). He then took the steering wheel as the driver forced himself on the girl. The distance travelled by the bus from the place of occurrence to the point where she was dropped at the bus stand in Kashmere Gate is around 26 km. Police found the bus had thick curtains installed, which made it impossible for people to see inside.Ghaziabad assistant regional transport officer Amit Ranjan Rai said the department would launch a special drive to inspect private tourist buses in the district. While such vehicles were already under scrutiny, enforcement would now be tightened, he said. “We will start a drive to check private tourist buses operating in the district,” Rai said.According to officials, private tourist buses will also be required to have GPS and vehicle location tracking devices installed. The transport department will verify whether these systems are installed and functional.The background and credentials of those operating the buses have also come under scrutiny. Character and police verification of both bus drivers and conductors will be made mandatory, officials said. Authorities will also check pollution certificates and other documents required for the operation of the vehicles. “There are hundreds of private tourist buses on the roads in Ghaziabad and we are now going to monitor them 24×7,” Rai said.He added sleeper buses would be allowed to have only sheer curtains, which would provide privacy to passengers while still allowing the interiors to be seen from outside. Curtains that completely block the view into the passenger area will not be permitted.The department’s move is particularly significant for sleeper and tourist buses, where passengers may travel for several hours and where enclosed compartments can make it difficult for people outside to notice what is happening inside. Rai said that similar action would also be taken against private buses and shuttles carrying schoolchildren in the district.The owner of Gupta Transport Service, Raj Gupta, said the curtains are used to ensure that the passengers have a peaceful sleep during the long hours of journey. Gupta, whose bus travels to places like Rishikesh, Dehradun and Himachal Pradesh, said the passengers decide to draw the curtains. “Since the buses move at night, light comes inside and bothers them while travelling and that disturbs their sleep,” said Gupta.Gautam Buddh Nagar is also preparing for a separate enforcement campaign. ARTO Udit Narayan Pandey said the transport department would conduct a three-day checking drive from Sept 7 to 9.During the drive, officials will inspect private buses and verify their documents, including licences, registration papers and other mandatory records. The physical condition and safety-related requirements of the vehicles will also be checked.Pandey said buses should have glass that remains clearly visible from outside, allowing officials and members of the public to see into the passenger compartment. GPS tracking and a camera device will also be checked as part of the inspection. He added that strict action would be taken against operators who fail to comply with the requirements and challans would be issued against them.With hundreds of private tourist buses operating across Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddh Nagar, transport officials said the latest drives are intended to strengthen regular monitoring rather than limit enforcement to one-off inspections.
