The Maharashtra government will buy 8,000 new buses for the state-run MSRTC over the next year. Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik announced this in the Legislative Council on Wednesday, December 11. He said Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland have already received orders and tenders for 3,000 of these buses.
Sarnaik said MSRTC has prepared a plan to upgrade all 216 bus depots across the state. He also said that the state aims to convert 25,000 diesel buses into electric vehicles by 2029. The work will be done through a public-private partnership model.
The goal is to improve the depots and also earn extra revenue by using the available space for commercial activity. He said this step is important because MSRTC is facing liabilities of INR 4,400 crore. The government wants to reduce this burden and bring the corporation out of losses in the coming months.
He assured the House that MSRTC employees will receive their salaries before the tenth of every month. He said this will be possible due to the planned restructuring of the transport body. Members of the opposition raised concerns about MSRTC’s financial condition. They pointed out the pending dues, delayed payments, and other employee issues.
Sarnaik said MSRTC’s main responsibility is to provide essential transport for more than 13 crore people. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Anil Parab questioned the feasibility of the redesign plan. He said MSRTC has a monthly salary burden of INR 600 crore along with pending debts.
Sarnaik said the situation has improved since he took charge. He said the government paid bonuses to employees this Diwali. He also said INR 65 crore in old dues was cleared and INR 2,800 crore has been allocated to MSRTC in the supplementary budget presented on Monday, December 8.
Share
Tweet
