Reeling under a severe financial crisis, the AP State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) struggles to find out ways to pay the salaries of its employees in the coming months.
Burdened with a loss of Rs 4,000 crore, the country’s biggest transport organisation APSRTC finds it difficult to overcome the losses and turn it into a profitable organisation.
According to the sources, RTC officials have postponed the purchase of new buses due to refusal of loans by financial institutions. They had planned to purchase as many as 8,000 new buses last year but could manage buying only 5,200 buses with banks’ support by mortgaging the organisation’s properties.
According to an RTC official, about 3,000 worn-out buses plying in the state need to be replaced, but the financial institutions have refused to sanction loans. “We are worrying about employees’ salaries in the coming months. The occupancy ratio must be increased to 74 percent against the present 68 percent,” he said.
It is learnt that the organisation is also facing troubles with manufacturers as it had to pay over Rs 100 crore for purchasing the buses last year. It has approached the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) for loan after the government’s assurance, sources said.
APSRTC pays Rs 220 crore towards salaries of employees every month, but it is making all efforts to mobilise the salaries in the coming month, said an RTC official. The proposal for diesel tax exemption is still pending with the government, and if it is approved, the organisation will get a relief of Rs 400 crore, he said.
“We are putting pressure on the government by explaining our financial situation and asking it to release pending reimbursement amounts,” the official said.
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