The Hindu : Front Page : TNSTC bus services hit a roadblock

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 12, 2006

Front Page

Front Page

TNSTC bus services hit a roadblock

P. Sudhakar

Reason: short supply of new tyres, `crippled' re-treading unit

TIRUNELVELI: Operation of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation buses has been hit in some parts of Tirunelveli and Tuticorin districts owing to a short supply of new tyres, and a `crippled' tyre re-treading unit at Srivaikuntam, major trade unions here allege.

TNSTC sources here said every old tyre is renewed five times by re-treading to give it an extended life to cross 1.63 lakh to 2 lakh km, an all-India record, though condition of roads is poor in these parts. But the re-treading unit's functioning is said to have been "paralysed" owing to shortage of raw materials.

According to the president of All-India Trade Union Congress, S. Kasi Viwanathan, and its general secretary, R. Arumugam, the re-treading unit, capable of handling 100 tyres a day, had been badly affected for the past six months, as supply of raw materials such as tread-rubber and solution had come down drastically.

"Following short supply, the unit is functioning only two days a week and more than 800 old tyres have piled up. This has led to detention of nearly 100 buses in 13 depots in Tirunelveli and Tuticorin districts, causing huge revenue loss," they alleged.

The general secretary of CITU-TNSTC, P. Muthukrishnan, alleged that even permanent employees of the corporation were being forced to go on casual leave owing to detention of buses. "We need at least 1,000 new tyres immediately to resume normal services in the two districts," he said.

A TNSTC official told The Hindu that 300 new tyres were being given every month and there was no shortage. He admitted that the supply of raw materials to the Srivaikuntam re-treading unit was affected "only for few days," as one of the suppliers moved the court after it was not allowed to compete in the bidding.

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