K. P. Natarajan (KPN Travels)
- The one thing that can remind you of the joy of travelling, and forget everything about the difficulties of commutation is easy access to transport. K. P. Natarajan, the founder of K.P.N. travels gave such access to transport to the people and became the uncrowned king of roadway passenger transport system.
- P. Natarajan hails from Periyaputthur, Salem. Though he came from a family of farmers, his interests did not align with theirs. He ventured into business as a tour operator, and soon gained great interest in the industry.
- The idea of starting a private transport company occurred to him on one of the tours. It is no new thing that problems start showing up when one starts following their dream. It was only after many struggles that he got the permission to run a private bus transport company.
- Natarajan was 23 when he started the company. He equipped the buses with modern facilities so as to give his passengers the best travel experience. The most common cause of bus accidents is the driver dozing off. Solving this problem was crucial to give his customers the safest travel. So he appointed 2 drivers for each bus, so that they can take shifts to drive the bus. This made bus rides better not only for the passengers, but also for the drivers.
- Initially private transport did not appeal to the masses as they thought it is much costlier than going in a government bus. But in due course, the rates neared those of Government buses. This made the masses turn to private buses. This is when Natarajan’s business started flying high.
- Having started off with just 1 bus, KPN travels operates over 600 modern buses, including luxury buses. To add fame to Natarajan’s name, KPN parcel service has also been doing a great job at garnering people’s goodwill.
- 1972 was the year that KPN was founded and today it is successfully en route to its Golden Jubilee year.
- Having achieved his first dream, K P Natarajan has now set his sights on operating a helicopter service between villages. A big dream, but not too big for this man.