The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) Board met on Wednesday and discussed a plan of action to be initiated post-COVID-19 to revitalise the public sector transport giant.
This was the first meeting after the new board was put in place. Corporation’s Managing Director Ch. Dwaraka Tirumala Rao welcomed the new Chairman A. Mallikarjun Reddy with a bouquet.
The meeting discussed in detail the measures needed to be initiated to put the corporation back on rails post-pandemic. The agenda comprised 45 issues that were taken up by the board members who took stock of key aspects like revenue earned and the money spent, maintenance of the fleet of buses and steps to offer improved services to the commuters.
The merger of APSRTC employees in the government has taken a huge financial burden off the shoulders of the corporation. From January 2020, when the employees migrated to the Public Transport Department, they have been receiving their salaries directly from the State government, which spends a monthly sum of ₹250 crore and annually ₹3,000 crore towards their salaries.
COVID impact
Of the 10,502 employees affected by COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020, 322 of them had succumbed to the virus. Even when the virus was raging at its peak, the APSRTC did not stop its services and continued to help people commute from one place to the other amid strict adherence to the COVID protocol, said the officials.
Improved services in bus stations, technical issues in bus depots, imparting skills to the employees periodically and purchase of new buses were other issues that came up for discussion.
Vice-Chairman Vijayanand Reddy, Zonal Chairpersons of Vizianagaram, Vijayawada, Nellore and Kadapa G. Bangaramma, Tatineni Padmavathi, Supraja and M. Manjula respectively, Principal Secretary, Finance S. S. Rawat, Princiapal Secretary, Transport and Roads and Buildings M. T. Krishna Babu, Principal Secretary, GAD Bhushan Kumar and others were present at the meeting.
