Southern States - Karnataka   

`Transport corpns. looking at profitability, better service'

By Our Staff Correspondent

MANGALORE JUNE 25. The Transport Minister, B. Ramanatha Rai, said today that the KSRTC, NWKRTC, NEKRTC, and the BMTC were looking at new horizons of increasing competitiveness and profitability, offering better facilities, and modernising their fleet.

Addressing a press conference here, Mr. Rai said the KSRTC and its sister corporations were making the right attitudinal changes and had started making profits. This had encouraged the Government to provide more facilities to commuters and aim at higher profitability.

To prevent accidents, the KSRTC had taken steps to fit speed governors in all its vehicles. The drivers were subjected to breath analyser tests, and whenever a driver was found be under the influence of an intoxicating substance, he was sent to a de-addiction camp. The KSRTC was honouring its drivers for accident-free driving with silver and gold medals every year. It had also taken steps to give the drivers the best facilities to bring down the level of fatigue during duty hours, particularly on long routes. These steps had shown tremendous improvement in accident-free service. The KSRTC had six training institutes where ultra-modern equipment and simulators were being used to train drivers, giving priority to safe and efficient driving, he said.

Mr. Rai said these steps had made the KSRTC and its sister corporations record the lowest accident rate among all State-owned road transport corporations. The KSRTC had introduced a compensation system, which enabled it to release Rs. 1 lakh immediately to the kin of passengers killed in accidents involving vehicles of the corporation.

To address accusations of politics and highhandedness in the appointment of drivers and conductors in the KSRTC, the corporation had made the selection process transparent through computerisation. The tests had been improved qualitatively. The selection process had become a model for other State-owned transport corporations, the minister said.

Stating that the KSRTC earned 13 medals last year, Mr. Rai said that it had brought down the pollution level by adopting the latest technology of tuning engines, keeping in check the emission level, and maintaining vehicles in pristine conditions. The KSRTC had introduced a special prize of Rs. 1,000 to those who showed its vehicles letting out hazardous emission. All units of KSRTC had emission checking equipment.

The KSRTC was planning to introduce mini bus services in various parts of the State, and nearly 100 vehicles would be on the road shortly, Mr. Rai added.

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