The recurrent tragedies involving long-distance sleeper buses, vividly illustrated by the recent infernos in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh, and Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, underscore a critical, systemic breakdown in India’s public transport safety mechanism. These incidents are not isolated mishaps but rather the predictable outcome of inadequate, easily circumvented regulations and a compromised enforcement structure.
India’s regulatory foundation for bus safety is anchored in the Central Motor Vehicle (CMV) Rules, and the Automotive Industry Standards (AIS-119), which specifically detail constructional requirements for sleeper coaches under the Bus Body Code (AIS-052). These standards mandate crucial safety provisions: a minimum of four emergency exits (including doors and roof hatches), the installation of Fire Detection and Suppression Systems (FDSS), the exclusive use of fire-retardant materials for internal furnishings, and stipulated dimensions for berths and the central gangway (required to be at least 450 mm wide) to ensure rapid egress. The provision of iron hammers near windows for emergency escape is also a clear requirement.
However, the efficacy of these regulations is undermined by two fundamental deficiencies: regulatory insufficiency and pervasive systemic non-compliance. The standards often fail to address the core design flaw of the multi-bunk system. Many international regulators have identified this restriction in space as the most significant safety issue and have banned sleeper buses. In India, the regulation is further complicated because a vast number of older, existing buses are exempted from essential modern safety upgrades.
The ease with which private operators systematically subvert these rules, driven by an overriding focus on commercial advantage, is no different from how rules are flouted in India in almost every sector. Another major violation is illegal body modification. Operators commonly purchase a bus chassis that is legally registered as a standard seater coach and then outsource the body fabrication to unauthorised local workshops. Here, the vehicle is illegally converted into a sleeper coach, maximising the berth count far beyond approved specifications. This non-standard modification bypasses the rigorous safety engineering required for proper weight distribution, structural stability, and, most critically, verified emergency access.
A corrupt enforcement chain structurally enables this negligence, and the mandatory Fitness Certificate (FC)—the official document confirming a bus’s roadworthiness—is widely alleged to be compromised. This institutional failure fosters a perverse incentive structure where illegal profit margins supersede human life. The practical consequences of this corruption are immediate: emergency exits are routinely found to be sealed, obstructed by cargo, or non-functional, and highly flammable materials are substituted for the mandated fire-retardant furnishings. Operators further exploit the system through “forum shopping,” registering their vehicles in states with lower taxes and laxer safety enforcement to evade stricter regulations.
This safety crisis is inextricably linked to India’s socio-economic realities, particularly the growing phenomenon of internal migration. As more Indians migrate from hinterlands to congested urban centres due to a lack of local economic opportunities, the demand for mass transit connecting cities to remote hometowns swells dramatically. This annual exodus generates a massive, concentrated travel rush, far exceeding the capacity of the national railways and state-run bus corporations.
This vacuum allows private operators to dominate, leading to exorbitant pricing and fares that exploit the absolute necessity of travel. Passengers, often migrant workers with limited resources, are forced to accept the elevated risks of the private sleeper coach merely to achieve mobility. The inadequate public transport during these peak seasons is not just an inconvenience; it is a failure to fulfill a fundamental socio-economic need.
Beyond the immediate safety hazards, the sleeper bus design presents a critical inefficiency issue, particularly relevant during periods of mass migration and festive crowding. A standard double-bunk sleeper bus carries significantly fewer passengers than a comparably sized semi-sleeper seated coach. The semi-sleeper coach, being primarily a seated configuration, is not only inherently safer in terms of structural integrity and ease of evacuation but also offers higher passenger density.
In the context of the massive, annual festive rush, the continued licensing and operation of the lower-capacity, high-risk sleeper design fundamentally limits the availability of effective, high-volume public transport. A prohibition on the inherently unsafe sleeper bus design would simultaneously improve passenger safety and increase the overall transport capacity available to the public. This move is essential not just for safety but for mitigating the exorbitant fares that arise from scarcity during peak travel times.
The pattern of tragedy—the burning bus, the sealed exits, the lost lives—is not just a technical flaw but a profound moral failure of the state.
A prohibition on all multi-bunk sleeper designs that cannot guarantee safe evacuation in fire conditions is the essential first step, following the clear precedents set by nations like China. This must be paired with the dismantling of the corrupted RTO approval process, replacing it with a mandatory, third-party type approval and certification system.
Ultimately, the state must recognise that the provision of sufficient, safe, and affordable public transport is a fundamental right of its citizens, especially those who power the nation’s economy but are forced to traverse vast distances for family and livelihood. The safety of a simple journey home must be guaranteed, not treated as a deadly lottery calculated by commercial greed and bureaucratic apathy. India must commit to a public transport system that protects its people, replacing the mobile coffin with a safe, reliable means of travel, thereby prioritising human life above all commercial and political considerations.
