DTC losing Rs 1 cr a month due to Gzad, Noida service termination

New Delhi, Feb 20 (UNI) The Delhi Transport Corporation is incurring a loss of over Rs one crore per month due to the termination of inter-state buses on Noida, Ghaziabad routes following the three-month long row between the governments of Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

The corporation has already incurred a loss of more than Rs 3.40 crore in the three months time, besides causing inconvenience to the commuters.

Before the services were put on hold between Noida and Delhi, the corporation was operating on bus eight routes including some inter-state buses to Agra, Himachal Pradesh, Nainital and Musoorie.

An analysis reveals that DTC was earning about Rs 6000 per day from one single bus in 10 trips. Hence in 24 days, the organisation was getting Rs 1.44 lakh per month and from around six buses per route, revenue works out to Rs 8.64 lakh. This means with eight major Noida-Delhi routes, DTC is losing Rs 69.12 (Rs 8,64,000 x 8) lakh per month.

It is also losing Rs 11 lakh per month from the inter-state bus services. From Noida alone, it incurred Rs 2.40 crore (Rs 80 lakh x 3) loss in the three months.

About 40 buses plied each day on the Delhi-Ghaziabad route fetching the corporation a revenue of little over a Rs 1.2 lakh per day. DTC has been losing a net revenue of about Rs 36 lakh per month and the loss for the three-months period works out to Rs 1.08 crore.

Noida and Ghaziabad have large number of small and ancillary units and are also emerging as a shopping hubs with large number of upcoming malls. Industry body Assocham is of the view that due to improper transportaiton facilities, the growth in the regions will adversely suffer, bringing down their contribution to the states' exchequer.

Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat said the employment losses may also magnify as commuting in these areas for large pool of skilled and unskilled labour would be a major problem, resulting into revenue losses.

Residents of Noida, Ghaziabad and adjoining areas such as Vaishali, Vasundhara, Hapur and Meerut are currently depending on private buses and commercial vehicles to reach their workplace.

Mr Rawat said the negotiations between transport authorities of the two states have not been able to reach any conclusion as they have chosen to stick to their respective stand, without budging an inch towards compromise formula. This has invited large scale public criticism for Delhi and UP governments. Therefore conclusive efforts should be put in by DTC management to solve the issue, since it is suffering massive losses.

If the current deadlock on movements of DTC buses is not resolved quickly, the vested interests will multiply to put the loss making DTC to menacing proportion from where it would be difficult for it to regain its strength, the chamber said in a proposal to resume the services being sent to Delhi and Uttar Pradesh governments.

UNI