The crisis in the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has deepened with another hike in the price of high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs.1.20 a litre by State-owned oil companies.
The hike, the second in 12 days, has plunged the loss-making State transport undertaking into a deeper financial crisis. The corporation now has to pay Rs.63.32 for a litre of HSD as it has been tagged as a bulk consumer.
The KSRTC has been purchasing HSD for Rs.62.12 a litre from IOC and HPCL for the last 11 days after the oil majors hiked the price by 45 paise.
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The corporation needs 4.3 lakh litres of HSD every day for its fleet. It now has to find another Rs.5 lakh a day on account of the Rs.1.20 increase in the price of HSD. The monthly fuel bill of the loss-making corporation is expected to go up from Rs.16.5 crore to Rs.18 crore on account of the new increase.
A top transport official says the KSRTC, in neck-deep crisis, will find it difficult to sustain its services as it does not have the money to purchase fuel at Rs.63.32 a litre.
The latest hike has come at a time when the corporation finds it difficult to pay the pension of its 37,000-odd retired staff due on February 5, as it cannot mobilise Rs.35 crore needed for the same.
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The only solace is the Rs.28 crore sanctioned for ‘absorbing’ the price hike and the Rs.25 crore announced as a special assistance by the government last week.
The revenue-expenditure gap that was Rs.90 crore will now mount to Rs.91.5 crore, sources said.