COVID-19: Mangaluru police uses specialised protection

When the black and white photos of the ‘London to Calcutta (Kolkata) bus service’ went viral on social media recently, the response of some of the netizens was “stop spreading fake news!” But, it isn’t a fake news. The late 1950s indeed offered people a lavish bus trip from London to Kolkata. 

While one of the viral images shows passengers at the Victoria Coach Station, London, boarding 'Albert', the other image show the same bus travelling through a valley. In another image the bus is stationed at a tourist spot. All these photos were captured during the bus’ maiden international journey in 1957.  

An image of the bus ticket is also making rounds on social media, that shows the route of the bus — London, Belgium, West Germany, Austria,Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, West Pakistan, India. The route in India followed Delhi, Agra, Allahabad, Banaras and finally Calcutta.

The ticket shows that a one side travel cost 145 pounds (13,644 Rupees at the present day) back then, and it was inclusive of all the luxury provided during the run.

The luxurious bus provided the facilities of reading, individual sleeping bunks, radio/taped music for parties and pleasure and fan heaters, among other things. The brochure reads, "Your complete home while you travel."

Some of the tour highlights included Banaras on the Ganges, The Taj Mahal, The Raj Path, The Rhine Valley and The Peacock Throne. Passengers reportedly got free shopping days in New Delhi, Tehran, Salzburg, Kabul, Istanbul and Vienna.

Bengaluru, Jul 15: Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) has announced temporary halt of production at its plant in Bidadi, which is on the outskirts of Bengaluru.

“Halting production will be from July 14 (second shift) to July 22 (first shift) and this is in accordance with the directives issued by the Government of Karnataka as well as to support the Govt. in their constant efforts to flatten the curve of the rising Covid-19 positive cases in Karnataka,” a statement from the company said.

Bengaluru Urban and Rural, and other districts are, are under lockdown from 8 pm on July 14 to 5 am on July 22.

“Since the onset of the pandemic, TKM has adopted a very proactive and multi-faceted approach to safeguard the physical as well as the mental well-being of all its stakeholders including customers, its employees, dealer and supplier partners,” the company said.

“The office staff at TKM’s corporate and regional offices, continue to work from home to help mitigate risks. In addition to the safety protocols that are being followed, TKM has provided safety kits containing essential items like sanitisers, 3 ply masks and handwashes to 5000 employees, their family members and their neighbourhoods.

“TKM understands the urgency of the situation. During these difficult times, TKM is taking obligatory actions to contain further spread and will continue to respond in accordance with guidance issued by the Government and its internal standards,” it added.