Southern States - Andhra Pradesh   

APSRTC losses attributed to privatisation move

By Our Staff Reporter

VISAKHAPATNAM DEC. 20. The reasons for the A.P. State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) slipping deep into crisis have been attributed to the Government's intention to privatise it and the management's attitude of imposing rules on employees rather than continuing its earlier approach of discussing administration and planning with them.

This was the opinion expressed by the general secretary, V. Rajarammohan Roy, and other office-bearers of the APSRTC Employees Union, at a press conference here on Saturday. To shore up the APSRTC, which has been was reeling under accumulated losses amounting to nearly Rs.1,000 crores, the State Government must reduce the M.V. Tax for APSRTC buses, reimburse concessions being offered on APSRTC buses to different categories of passengers and effectively control illegal operations of the private vehicles, Dr. Rajarammohan Roy said.

The efficiency of employees had increased since 1996-97, the year APSRTC recorded profits for the last time till now, but the organisation continued to accumulate losses.

He reeled out statistics of performance of the corporation and losses accumulated by it. While it made a profit of Rs. 6.32 crores during 1996-97, it started incurring losses from the next year. The losses it had incurred since then were put at Rs. 49.72 crores in 1997-98, Rs. 98.64 crores in 1998-99, Rs.151.85 crores in 1999-2000, Rs.209.95 crores in 2000-01, Rs. 275.07 crores in 2001-02 and Rs.180.93 crores in 2002-03.

Till 1995, the APSRTC was paying M.V. Tax on the basis on per seat per quarter but from then on it was asked to pay a percentage of earnings as the tax. The percentage of tax was increased regularly and went up to 15 per cent. It was reduced to 10 per cent on city buses and to 12 per cent on moffussil buses after an agitation by employees.

He alleged that routine benefits of employees were stopped and leave encashment of the present year was not released yet. The one shift method, in which the bus crew were doing two shifts for 12 to 13 hours, was not only putting them to strain but also rendering about four hours of utility time of a bus going waste. By doing two shifts, the crew were earlier doing 16 hours of duty. With buses not being run after 6 p.m. or 7 p.m., thanks to the single shift, private operators were making money in the absence of APSRTC buses. The introduction of ticket issuing machines on the buses, by eliminating the conductors, had resulted in the driver (who is to take care of tickets issue also) being put to additional burden and he was not able to concentrate on driving, which needed all attention for his own safety and the passengers' also, the APSRTC EU leaders pointed out.

Though not against modernisation, they wanted conductors to be put on the buses to operate the ticket issuing machines, which would save the APSRTC a lot of time and also ensure accurate billing of the tickets issued.

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