Hyderabad: Transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Monday said the Congress govt had initiated the process of conducting elections for a recognised union in the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC), stating that the proposed merger of RTC employees with the state govt would be finalised through a committee involving the elected recognised union. Replying to a question in the legislative council, the minister said the govt was involving recognised unions to avoid the perception that it was taking unilateral decisions. He recalled that 20 RTC unions had earlier held discussions with the deputy chief minister, ministers and officials for nearly 15 hours, with elections for a recognised union emerging as their primary demand.Ponnam said the demand for a merger with the govt would be addressed after the union elections. The winning union would be included in a committee of officials to discuss and decide the way forward on the merger. He noted that issues were continuing even in states where RTC employees had already been merged and said the govt was therefore proceeding cautiously.He said the govt had implemented 11% fitment from July and had granted two PRCs and five DAs to RTC employees. Highlighting the financial challenges facing the corporation, Ponnam said 13,000 employees had retired between 2017 and 2024, with ₹1,150 crore due to them. He added that arrears and gratuity amounting to ₹8,431 crore remained to be paid. The govt, he said, was moving ahead while managing the debt burden left by the previous govt and was committed to clearing the outstanding dues of retired workers.‘Approved 1,500 conductor posts’He also said RTC workers were being provided accident insurance coverage of ₹1 crore. “The govt planned to acquire land and construct bus stations in the Future City,” he said, adding that efforts were underway to develop RTC across all sectors and make it a leading transport organisation in the country. A unified ticketing system for Metro Rail and RTC services was also being introduced. On recruitment, Ponnam said appointments for 1,000 driver and 743 worker posts had been completed, with appointment letters to be handed over by the CM in the coming months. The govt had also approved the recruitment of 1,500 conductors. He said the recruitment process was conducted transparently through the police department to prevent errors.According to the minister, more than 10,000 RTC buses are currently operating across Telangana. He said the corporation presently held the third position in the country and expressed confidence that it would soon move to second place. Ponnam alleged that the previous govt had weakened the corporation and remained indifferent when workers were on a 60-day strike. He claimed that the previous govt later announced the merger of RTC after realising that around 40,000 RTC workers were opposed to it during the elections, but failed to implement the merger. He described RTC as a lifeline for the poor, comparing its importance to that of the Railways as the lifeline of the nation.
Source link
