Bangalore: The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation has made a profit of Rs. 27 crore in the current financial year. Its total earnings have crossed the Rs. 1,000-crore mark, making it one of the best State transport undertakings in the country.

Complimenting the corporation, its officers and staff on the achievement, Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said the revenue realised in the corresponding period last year was Rs. 838 crore and for the entire 2005-06 it was Rs. 989 crore.

The KSRTC has set a total earnings target of Rs. 1,232 crore for the coming financial year with a Rs. 50-crore profit.

A group of senior KSRTC officials led by Transport Minister N. Cheluvarayaswamy called on the Chief Minister on Friday and briefed him about the performance of the KSRTC.

Mr. Kumaraswamy said the Government would provide financial support to the KSRTC to improve bus services. He said the North-west KRTC and North-east KRTC would make a turnaround shortly. With a fleet of 5,900 buses, including 150 Volvo vehicles, the KSRTC was catering for 2.2 million passengers a day, he said.

D. Thangaraj, Principal Secretary, Department of Transport, later told The Hindu that the KSRTC had recorded good performances under all parameters, such as utilisation of vehicles available, earnings per km and fuel utilised per km. The number of workers per bus was only six compared to eight in States such as Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

Bio-fuel being tried

He said the KSRTC had introduced bio-fuel. Some buses were being run on a diesel mixed with honge oil and ethanol, leading to reduced running costs. Running urban transport buses was not a profit-making proposition, and even the Delhi Transport Corporation ran up a loss of Rs. 800 crore last year. But the KSRTC had not only wiped off accumulated losses of over Rs. 500 crore but also made a profit.

The Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation made a profit of Rs. 114 crore last year and it was expected to reach Rs. 190 crore this year, Mr. Thangaraj said.

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