Hyderabad: Transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Monday said that the matter concerning the integration of RTC employees into the state govt, as well as the revival of the recognised union in the corporation, is currently under discussion. Replying to questions raised by BRS member T Harish Rao, among others, in the assembly, the minister admitted that the demand for more buses on various routes has increased and attributed this to the success of free travel for women under the Mahalakshmi scheme.“We are continuing to purchase new buses, and electric buses are also being introduced under the PM-eBus Sewa scheme. Due to the Mahalakshmi scheme, there is a significant demand for bus services across many regions of the state. In Hyderabad, we have recently commenced bus operations on 349 new routes,” Ponnam said. Stating that the govt is clearing all pending arrears related to salaries, allowances, CCS dues, and PF contributions of RTC employees, the minister assured that the promotion of the RTC, the welfare of its employees, and the convenience of passengers remain top priorities of the Congress govt.The minister said that the previous BRS govt had declared that it could no longer bear the financial burden of the RTC and had intended to shut it down. “They instilled fear and panic among the workforce by threatening to terminate 43,000 employees. During the previous govt’s tenure, not a single bus was purchased, nor were any new employees recruited. Over a period of 10 years, the RTC was systematically weakened,” Ponnam alleged.Under the current Congress govt, within just two years, 2,600 new buses have been bought, and 3,038 employees have been recruited. “The govt is planning to send buses that are over 15 years old to the scrap. For employees who were permanently removed from service in the past, we constituted a three-member committee and have reinstated 250 of them. Through women’s self-help groups, we have empowered them to become the owners of 600 buses,” the minister said.To issue smart cards to beneficiaries of free travel in RTC buses, the govt is obtaining beneficiary data from various sources, including the databases of Telangana Technology Services (TGTS), the Centre for Good Governance (CGG), self-help groups, the department of education, and the department of health, he added.Earlier, Harish asked the govt to provide the exact date for merging RTC employees with the state govt, whether Rs 9,200 crore under the Mahalakshmi scheme had been paid to the RTC, when the PRC will be implemented for RTC employees, whether bus operations had decreased despite rising demand, and about the revival of union tradition in the corporation. “We demand that the govt abandon its evasive tactics and immediately address both the legitimate demands of the workers and the critical issue of the bus shortage,” he said. The minister said that more details would be provided when the House takes up questions related to the merger of RTC employees with the state govt.
