The Regional Transport Authority has jurisdiction to issue a temporary permit for a portion of the notified route, and the intersection of a notified route may not amount to traversing or overlapping the route.

1. - This petition under Article 226 of the Constitution challenges the order of respondent No. 1 the Regional Transport Authority, Udaipur dated 15.5.76 granting one temporary permit in favour of respondents 2 to 3 on Udaipur-Bhudar via Palodara route.

2. The petitioner is no an existing operator on Udaipur Rikhabdeo route via Palodara and his permit is said to the valid upto 7.6.77. Respondent 3 moved an application on 13.4.76 under section 62(1)(c) and 68F(1)(c) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 (hereinafter to be called "the Act") for a temporary permit and the purpose for which permit is required was mentioned (to meet a particular temporary need) as non-temporary permit cannot be granted and need persists). Similarly respondent 2 also applied in the same manner on the same day for the grant of a temporary permit. The said applications were circulated by the Secretary Regional Transport Authority and ultimately it was ordered on 15.5.76 that temporary permits be issued. The reasons for issue of this mentioned in the said resolution are that it is necessary considering the requirement of the public and the convenience on this route that a temporary permit should be issued and further that the temporary permit can be issued for four months till the State Transport Corporation operates on this route and after the portion of Udaipur Palodara is nationalised the buses will operate only from Palodara to Bhudar. On 19.3.76 a scheme known as Udaipur Kushalgarh via Jaisamand. Salumbar, Banswara has been notified under section 68D(3) of the Act. The said scheme is a scheme of total exclusion which means that no private operator can operate on a notified route. It may be mentioned that the draft scheme with regard to this notified route had been earlier published under section 68D(3) of the Act in the Rajasthan Rajpatra dated 24.4.73.

3. There is also a notified route known as Udaipur-Dungarpur under section 68D(3) of the Act. The said route is an operational route and the Rajasthan State Transport Corporation is operating on this. It is common ground that the notified route of Udaipur to Kushalgarh is common ground from Udaipur to Palodara of the temporary route. Udaipur to Bhudar which has been given to the respondents 2 and 3. It may be mentioned that respondents 2 and 3 had previously applied on 18.12.75 and 28.10.75 respectively with regard to Udaipur Bhudar route which had been granted by the Regional Transport Authority by its order of 23rd January, 1976. The said grant was challenged in the writ petition S.B. Civil Writ No. 253/76 which was finally heard and decided on 1.3.76 and the order of the Regional Transport Authority, Udaipur dated 23.1.76 granting permits to the respondents 2 and 3 had been quashed. The counsel for the petitioner Mr. Vyas challenges the present grant of temporary permits in favour of respondents 2 and 3 on the following grounds:-

(a) That part of the portion of the route of respondents 2 and 3 Udaipur to Bhudar overlaps Udaipur Dungarpur notified route duly notified under section 68D(3) of the Act from Rikhabdeo to bifurcation point towards Bhudar for a distance of nearly 2 Kilometers.

(b) As the permit for the route Udaipur-Bhudar given to the petitioner will overlap part of the notified route of Udaipur Kushalgarh upto Palodara the Regional Transport Authority has no jurisdiction to give such a temporary permit.

(c) That no temporary need as contemplated by section 62(1)(c) is shown in the application of respondents 2 and 3 and therefore the grant to them by the Regional Transport Authority is without jurisdiction.

Re:(a): I may straight away say that so far as the overlapping of a portion of Udaipur-Dungarpur notified route from Rikhabdeo to Bhudar by the temporary permit of respondents 2 and 3 is concerned the material is insufficient on record to permit any finding to be given. Though in the reply by respondents 2 and 3 it was mentioned that the bifurcation towards Bhudar is only 1 or 2 miles,