Transport Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakarishnan said here on Sunday that the government is not considering a slash in the KSRTC ticket fares in accordance with the decrease in the diesel price. The KSRTC is still running on loss and a reduction in the fuel price alone cannot bring it down, he said.
The Minister was addressing reporters at a press conference convened at the Kottayam Press Club. He said the fares were hiked earlier not only in the backdrop of increasing fuel prices and the Corporation’s loss has gone up from `98 crore to `110 crore per month. He said, however, the government would consider rolling back the fare hike if the fuel prices go further down.
He said the Corporation’s loss increased owing to various reasons, including the DA hike for pensioners. With this the Corporation has to find an amount of `40 crore per month to clear the pension arrears. “The government is negotiating with various cooperative banks to avail loans. Ironically, the banks are under the control of the political parties that lead agitations against the Corporation regarding pension arrears,” he said.
He said the Corporation’s revenue had gone up by `1.5 to `1.8 crore per month in the past couple of months, and it is heading to a hike of `7 crore in revenue per month. He also expressed hope that the business would reach a break-even point in the next three months, with the help of various financial arrangements.
Responding to the questions regarding the legal dispute between the Kerala and Karnataka State Transport Corporations over the brand name ‘KSRTC’, the Minister said Kerala will fight the issue legally. “No matter what the claims they make, the brand name belongs to us. Kerala RTC was formed in 1960s when the state now being recognised as Karnataka belonged to the then Mysore state. We will fight it out legally and file an appeal before the trademark authority,” he said.
He said the confusion over making the Malabar Christian College as the main venue of the state school youth festival will be sorted out after holding talks with the organising committees of both the events.
News: New Indian Express
