No bus fare hike in state, clarifies Karnataka Dy CM Lakshman Savadi

Savadi said Road Transport Corporations (RTCs) have submitted their proposal requesting the government to increase bus fare

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister Lakshman Savadi who holds transport portfolio clarified on Thursday that there is no proposal before the government to hike bus fare even as prices of fuel is skyrocketing.

Speaking to reporters here, he said Road Transport Corporations (RTCs) have submitted their proposal requesting the government to increase bus fare. Common people are already in dire straits due to the scourge of Covid-19 and natural disaster like unprecedented floods. They will face more trouble if fare is hiked, the DyCM remarked.

Savadi said a total of 4,000 news buses (1,000 buses each to four transport utilities) were announced in the previous budget but the buses couldn't be inducted as the state faced financial crisis in the changed scenario. The bus operation will back to normalcy by the month of April.

Post-lockdown, North Eastern Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NEKRTC) is operating 90% of its buses, about 80 per cent of the buses of North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWRKTC) have hit the roads, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is running about 75% buses and Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) is operating 60% buses. The BMTC is incurring about 1.5 crore loss every day, he explained.

A pre-budget meeting has been scheduled with Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa in Bengaluru on Friday and a request for 3,000 new buses will be placed in the meeting and 1000 each buses will be allotted to NEKRTC, NWRKTC and KSRTC. Instead of scrapping the old buses, the transport department will convert them into toilet, daycare and feeding centres in the bus stands at district and taluk headquarters, Savadi added.