Kathmandu, May 21
Effective enforcement of Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act-2049 BS is lacking. Some provisions dictated by the Act have been violated as found by a recent field monitoring carried out in a joint coordination with the Central Child Welfare Board, Labour Office Bagmati and Children Investigation Coordination Center (104) and authorities concerned.
The Act incorporates a provision seeking a license for any person to work as a conductor in a public vehicle, and disqualify the person under 18 for obtaining a conductor license. It clearly states that no owner or manager of a public motor vehicle shall engage any person, who has not obtained a license, as a conductor. The monitoring team during the study found the Act violated however.
The findings are that people working as conductors/ driver assistants in public vehicles do not have license as required by the Act. The monitoring was carried out under the child labour-free campaign.
The joint monitoring team rescued 53 boys from 14-17 age group hired by public vehicles breaching the Act. Among the rescued, 37 have been rehabilitated within the family. Five have been kept in the child home while eight escaped following the rescue. In course of rescue operations, 12 drivers/ owners of public vehicles were fined for violating the law. They were fined Rs 10,000 each.
According to Transport Department Director and Spokesperson Tulsiram Aryal, further study is underway to ensure effective enforcement of the provision relating to the license for a conductor incorporated in the Act.
He hopes that the enforcement of the Transport Management Directives 2060 BS (revised) would address the issues involved.
