Only 15 per cent RTC buses ply in Telangana
TS, AP governments are considering fare hike, but fear that move may boomerang; Maoists back RTC employees’ strike
Hyderabad: The Road Transport Corporation on Thursday managed to run only 15 per cent of its buses in Telangana and 38 per cent in Andhra Pradesh with temporary staff.
RTC managing director N. Sambasiva Rao said the government was open to discussions with the employees’ unions and invited them for further talks. He also said that the government was looking at fare hikes, but added that it could boomerang and result in further losses to the RTC.
RTC has employed temporary drivers and conductors to keep the services running. On Thursday, the number of RTC bus services in both states increased slightly from Wednesday.
In AP, the proportion of buses running on Thursday increased to 38 per cent from 12 per cent on the previous day. In TS, however, it remained at only 15 per cent.
Mr Rao, meanwhile, said that the two governments were examining imposing a fare hike on a daily basis, but cautioned that it could boomerang.
“If we increase fares by 10 per cent, aiming for Rs 300 crore additional revenue, we may get Rs 320 crore. But if we impose a 20 per cent hike aiming for Rs 500 crore, we may not get it. People are price sensitive. They are looking at ways to save money. We can’t impose hikes as we want.”
Mr Rao added that the RTC had not estimated the losses incurred so far due to the strike. “We are only trying to make sure people don’t have problems. We can give any amount of hikes to the employees but the problem is that there is no money now.”
TS transport minister P. Mahender Reddy said that a three-member Cabinet sub-committee comprising himself, finance minister Etela Rajender and home minister Nayani Narsimha Reddy, had been formed to look into the demands of the RTC employees.
He also said that demands for a 43 per cent hike were unrealistic given the daily loss of Rs 1 crore that the RTC was burdened with. His AP counterpart Sidda Raghava Rao, meanwhile, said that the proportion of buses running would be increased to 55 per cent with the interim measures being employed.
Elsewhere, TS industries minister Jupally Krishna Rao was stopped by RTC staff of Kalwakurthy depot while he was on his way to inaugurate Mission Kakaitya works.Meanwhile, Moaists also extended their support to the protest.