It seems that the recent crisis in Andhra Pradesh that has been devastated by the cyclone Hudhud has brought out the worst in some people and they are making a killing by exploiting the situation in Visakhapatnam.
Apart from a hike in prices of milk, water and other essential commodities, there has been a mindboggling rise in long distance bus fares as well. Shockingly, the bus fare from Visakhapatnam to Bangalore has been increased by 400 per cent and now it equals airfare. While the average ticket price for an AC sleeper from Visakhapatnam to Bangalore is anywhere between Rs 1,100 to Rs 1,450 depending on the bus type and operator, private buses are now charging a whopping Rs 5,500 per passenger for Bangalore. For Chennai the fare was jacked up to Rs 4,500 and travelling to Hyderabad will set you back by Rs 4,000!
With the airport being closed due to the damage caused by the cyclone, train services only partially restored and that too on a single track, public transport still paralysed and roads badly damaged, private tour operators are out to fleece desperate passengers.
So high is the demand that private tour operators, who ran only night buses, have now started plying the buses even during the day. So huge are the profit margins that buses from as far as Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are being pressed into service by these private companies. What has made matters worse is the fact that the State-owned Road Transport Corporation is running only a skeletal service on long distance routes.
Even passengers headed for Visakhapatnam from within Andhra Pradesh are being fleeced by the ruthless private bus operators as in the absence of public transport the only other option before the people is to hire private taxis and other vehicles. Meanwhile, Visakhapatnam, which bore the brunt of the cyclone, is limping back to normal with restoration of essential supplies three days after it was battered by Hudhud. The residents of Visakhapatnam have been reeling under a crisis as electricity and items of daily needs like milk, bread etc were not available and the communication network had virtually collapsed due to the devastation caused by the cyclone on Sunday.
The State Government is making all efforts to ensure that electricity supply is resumed at the earliest. Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who has been camping in the city to oversee relief operations, directed officials to supply packages of food items like rice, dal, edible oil and some vegetables to the victims.