The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation, with an operational fleet of around 4,600-4,700 buses, has often been at the center of controversies as trade unions have repeatedly opposed its proposed reforms. file | Photo Credit: H. Vibhu
TeaThe cash-strapped Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is headed for another crisis with Biju Prabhakar, chairman and managing director of the public utility, announcing that he will step down.
With an operational fleet of around 4,600-4,700 buses, the corporation has often been at the center of controversies as trade unions have repeatedly opposed its proposed reforms. This time the public utility has grabbed headlines for a different reason. Inter-departmental disputes as well as repeated reprimands from the Kerala High Court have forced Mr. Prabhakar to inform the government of his desire to shut it down.
while in the latest incident Expressed strong displeasure over non-receipt of last month’s salary To KSRTC employees, the High Court on July 14 directed Mr Prabhakar to appear before it online if the salaries are not paid by July 20. The reluctance of the Finance Department to provide timely assured monthly financial assistance to the Corporation has made things worse. A section of employees owing allegiance to the opposition Congress took out a protest march to Mr. Prabhakar’s official residence.
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During the earlier crisis, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had assured that a monthly financial assistance of Rs 50 crore would be given to the corporation before the 5th of every month, which would pay the salaries of 25,000 employees. However, the Finance Department is dragging its feet by not paying the promised amount. Instead it released only ₹30 crore, that too after repeated requests by the corporation every month. KSRTC has an average monthly turnover of ₹210 crore, and requires around ₹260 crore to meet all its expenses, including salaries. Had the government provided an assured monthly assistance of ₹50 crore on time, the corporation could have remained more active without depending on other financial institutions. Besides, the state has not provided adequate major working capital sought by the corporation in the recent past. As a result, around 1,200 buses are lying idle after COVID-19 without proper maintenance.
To add to KSRTC’s woes, angry employees keep opposing the reforms proposed by the management from time to time. A senior KSRTC official asked how the management could implement reforms when the employees were not even given other facilities, let alone salaries on time. The corporation’s recent decision to introduce a 12-hour single-duty system for employees has also run into difficulties due to opposition from unions.
Though the management implemented a new system for optimum utilization of staff on a pilot basis in selected depots from October 1, 2022, it could not extend it to the entire state even nine months after the introduction of the new system.
Disability of a section of employees is also a matter of serious concern for the Corporation. Besides this, there is a possibility of minor cabinet reshuffle in the coming months in the state. In Kerala, Transport Minister Antony Raju can be replaced by any other Left Front ally. The outgoing KSRTC chairman and managing director, who has good relations with the current transport minister, is reportedly reluctant to serve under any other minister.
There is also good news amidst these developments. The new legal entity formed under the corporation, KSRTC-SWIFT, can register profits as appointments in SWIFT are on contract basis. This means that the management will be able to implement reforms easily.
All this underlines the apathy of the state government in finding a permanent solution to the issues plaguing the corporation, its inability to deal with the demands of the trade unions and resolve the inter-departmental tussle, which has deepened the crisis in the corporation, and Kerala’s poor financial condition.
The reluctance of the employee unions to heed the government also indicates that a changing of the guard at the top will not bring any change in the corporation. Instead, unions may be more daring in the future. The situation requires a multi-pronged approach involving management, employees, government departments and trade unions. It is in the best interest of the government and citizens that KSRTC, which serves more than 25 lakh commuters every month, should be kept running and rejuvenated.