4 Years On, 27,000 RTC Staff Still Await PRC Salary Arrears

 Hyderabad: The management of TGSRTC has been delaying the redemption of bonds issued to 27,000 of its employees in 2015 by the previous BRS government in lieu of salary arrears.

In 2015, the previous BRS government hiked the salaries of the RTC employees based on the recommendations of the PRC. In view of financial constraints, the previous BRS government issued bonds to employees equivalent to their salary arrears following the implementation of the Pay Revision Commission.

The bonds were supposed to be redeemed by the government after five years on January 1, 2020, with an annual interest of 8.75 per cent. This period ended on October 1, 2020.

In spite of the representations from the RTC unions, the previous BRS government failed to refund the bond amounts to 45,000 employees. After the Congress government came into power, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy handed over a cheque of Rs 280 crore to RTC managing director V.C. Sajjanar in February 2024.

Although the bonds issued to 15,000 RTC drivers were redeemed in April, other employees — approximately 27,000 — are still waiting for their money. The affected employees include conductors, mechanical staff, clerical staff, security guards, and supervisors.

This delay, despite the Chief Minister releasing the funds, has caused unrest among the employees.