Despite outsourcing the maintenance of buses to a private firm to ensure better service for passengers, the condition of the fleet at the Sahibabad depot shows no significant improvement. In the past nine months, the private firm has been paid Rs 5.84 crore for the upkeep of 146 buses. However, reports indicate that many buses are still gathering dust due to a lack of proper maintenance.
Contract And Costs
The responsibility for maintaining the depot's 146 buses—comprising Ordinary, Pink, and Janrath buses—was handed over to the firm on February 1. Headquarters cited a shortage of internal staff as the reason for this decision.
The firm charges a fee of Rs 5.24 per kilometer for maintenance. With the depot's buses covering an average of 40,000 to 50,000 kilometers daily, the transport corporation pays the firm approximately Rs 2.5 lakh per day. Monthly payments to the firm have ranged between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 80 lakh.
Operational Issues And Fines
Despite these payments, approximately 15 to 20 buses are currently parked at the depot for maintenance. While officials state that a five percent maintenance reserve is standard, the current number of off-road buses exceeds this, leading to breakdowns on routes and revenue loss for the corporation.
Monitoring officials have penalised the firm for these lapses. Over the last six months, Rs 14.36 lakh has been deducted from the firm’s bills as fines. However, sources suggest these fines are insufficient to cover the losses incurred by the corporation.
Official Statement
UPSRTC Service Manager,Bijay Chaudhary said, "After an exemption for the first three months, deductions are being made from the firm's bill every month as fines. Deductions are made from the bill if buses run less or remain off-road. A report on this is sent to the headquarters every month."
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Fleet And Financial Data
Status of Buses at Sahibabad Depot
Ordinary Buses: 105
Pink Buses (AC): 18
Janrath Buses (AC): 23
Total Fleet: 146
Payment History (Last 9 Months)
| Mass | Value |
|---|---|
| February | 52,00,000 |
| march | 74,00,000 |
| april | 64,50,000 |
| May | 69,68,000 |
| june | 53,45,000 |
| july | 57,15,000 |
| august | 73,15,000 |
| september | 62,05,000 |
| october | 78,15,000 |
| Total | 5,84,13,000 |
Fines Deducted (Last 6 Months)
| Mass | Price (lakh) |
|---|---|
| May | 1.25 |
| june | 2.10 |
| july | 7.20 |
| august | 1.21 |
| september | 1.15 |
| october | 1.45 |
| Total | 14.36 |