A resident of Balurghat in South Dinajpur district has filed a complaint against some private bus owners for allegedly charging higher fares than usual for a trip to Calcutta.

Biswajit Pramanik, who lives in Balurghat town, filed his online complaint with the district consumer affairs department on Sunday, alleging that private bus owners demanded around double the usual fare from him on Sunday.

“I went to the local bus terminus on Sunday as I had to buy a ticket to go to Calcutta that day itself. Usually, the bus fare to Calcutta is around ₹500 for a seat and ₹600 for a sleeper. Those at the counters selling tickets of private buses demanded ₹1,400 for a seat and ₹1,500 for a sleeper,” said Pramanik.

“As I protested, I was told that prices vary depending on the demand for tickets. Eventually, I bought a ticket for ₹1,000. This practice cannot go on. I have filed complaints with the consumer affairs department and the transport department,” he added.

Every day, nine to 10 buses run from Balughat to Calcutta, which are located around 440 kilometres apart.

Gopal Kundu, secretary of the Balurghat Long Distance Night Bus Owners’ Association, admitted that the fare charged from Pramanik was higher than average.

“As fewer buses are running these days (post-Holi), the demand for tickets has increased. They (the bus service) could have charged around ₹700 from him but ₹1,000 is a comparatively higher amount. We will talk to the bus owners concerned soon about this,” said Kundu.

Monojit Raha, an official of the district consumer affairs department, said they had received Pramanik's complaint.

“We got the complaint online and are looking into the issue,” Raha said, adding that appropriate action would be if the allegation was found to have merit.