Buses parked in Berhampur. Picture by Gopal Krishna Reddy

Berhampur, Sept. 25: The Odisha State Road Transport Corporation, Berhampur division, has incurred heavy losses due to frequent strikes in Andhra Pradesh in protest against the decision to create a separate Telengana state.

“Many of our buses ply between Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. Since August 12, we have incurred a loss of Rs 2.61-crore,” said district transport manager of the corporation Lala Ashok Kumar Roy.

Plying of buses in Berhampur, Vijaya Nagar, Jeypore, Bhabanipatna and Bhanja Nagar units under the Berhampur division has badly affected resulting revenue losses. The average loss is Rs 6.21 lakh a day, he said. About 60 buses ply on 31 routes in these units.

The corporation runs 10 buses from Berhampur to Rayagada, Nabarangpur, Umerkote and Jeypore everyday. These buses ply through various towns and areas of Andhra Pradesh. Six buses ply to Vizag from Bhawanipatna unit and 32 buses go to Vijaya Nagar from Malkangiri and other places. The bus services from Bhanja Nagar and Jeypore to various places are also affected due to the strikes.

Commuters are also facing problems due to the strikes. Many students, who study at various educational institutions in Andhra, are worried over the situation. Deepak Padhi of Paralakhemundi in Gajapati district studies in Chaitanya in Bijayawada. He said: “I have to encounter trouble when I visit my parents.”

“If the situation continuous, I would prefer not to continue my son’s studies in Andhra Pradesh and choose some other place,” said Deepak’s mother Kalpana Padhi.

Many private buses, which ply to Paralakhemundi from Berhampur through Ichhapur, Sompeta or Palasa in Andhra Pradesh, also face same difficulties. “Such strikes have affected the private bus owners in particular and the passengers in general,” said chief conductor Venkiti Rao.