Tourist bus operators in Kerala have suspended all interstate services to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka from Monday evening, citing what they describe as “illegal taxes” and “harassment” by authorities in the neighbouring states.
The Luxury Bus Owners Association (LBOA) announced that the suspension, effective from November evening, was a “forced decision” aimed at protecting the safety of vehicles, passengers, and drivers. The move is expected to disrupt travel plans during the peak tourism season, particularly for group tours, corporate trips, and school excursions that often rely on interstate buses.
According to LBOA state president AJ Rijas, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka officials have been levying heavy fines and seizing Kerala-registered tourist buses, even when the vehicles hold valid All India Tourist Permits (AITPs) issued under the Central Motor Vehicles Act.
“For over a year, Tamil Nadu authorities have been collecting tax arbitrarily from Kerala-registered vehicles, causing repeated harassment to operators and passengers,” the association said in a statement. It added that the Kerala government had refrained from retaliatory action in the hope of resolving the dispute through dialogue.
The association’s general secretary Maneesh Sasidharan said that several buses had been detained and operators forced to pay steep penalties without clear justification. “Despite following all legal requirements, we are treated as violators once we cross state borders,” he said, urging the central government to ensure uniform implementation of the AITP framework across all states.
The suspension could have a ripple effect on Kerala’s tourism and transport industries, which together employ thousands of drivers, tour operators, and logistics workers. Private tourist buses play a key role in ferrying domestic tourists between popular destinations such as Kochi, Munnar, Wayanad, Ooty, Coimbatore, and Bengaluru.
Tour operators say that while short-term losses are inevitable, the move has drawn attention to long-standing issues in interstate vehicle taxation. Under current rules, tourist vehicles holding AITPs are exempt from paying state-level taxes, but several states continue to impose their own levies, often leading to disputes and vehicle seizures.
The association has written to Kerala Transport Minister K. B. Ganesh Kumar and Transport Commissioner S. Sreejith, urging them to raise the matter with their counterparts in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, as well as the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).
Conflicts over road tax collection and transport permits between southern states are not new. Similar disputes have erupted in the past over stage carriage and contract carriage permits, affecting both passenger and goods transport.
Industry observers say the latest stand-off underscores the need for a harmonised interstate transport policy, particularly as southern India’s economies are deeply integrated through tourism, trade, and labour mobility.