TSRTC plans to jack up rents of shops in depots

Hyderabad: The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) management is planning to increase the non-operating revenue by affecting a hike in the rent of commercial shops in bus depots by 10 per cent. 

The Corporation had been reeling under accumulated losses to the tune of over Rs 2,500 crore including the losses of Rs 300 crore during the previous financial year. In an attempt to raise revenues through non-operations, the management is contemplating to affect hike in the rent of commercial shops in the State wide RTC depots.

According to the officials, the Corporation gets 2.5 per cent of the total revenues through commercial activities other than the operational revenue. “We have decided to concentrate on minimising the depot wise losses by this year end and also to increase the rent of the shops in the bus depots,” said Sunil Sharma, the Incharge managing director of TSRTC.

The MD on Thursday reviewed the Corporation and sought the details of the depots, which were in profits by November 2018 and the targets fixed for 2018 along with the details of the depots in profits and losses.

The MD also inquired about the target fixed for the next quarter from January to March 2019. He asked the officials to ensure the losses are decreased by this year end. The MD sought depot action plan to achieve the targets fixed for March 2019.

Apart from this, the management has decided to have multiplexes in vacant lands of the Corporation. Transport principal secretary Sunil Sharma said that it was decided to speed up the construction of the multiplexes proposed in the vacant lands of the Corporation.

He said that it has come to his notice that the RTC was facing more losses at some routes. A meeting of RMs and DMs will be held in 15 days to chalk out strategy on how to minimise those losses. 

The MD further said that the 40 electric buses procured by the Corporation would be started within a week’s time and later the number would be increased to 100 in the coming days. The buses in the Metro Rail routes would be decreased and operated where there is no train facility. The Corporation would procure 1,000 new buses during this year.