Jharkhand Tourism Development Corporation (JTDC), which operates the city bus service, has asked East Singhbhum district administration to clear pending dues to the tune of Rs 45 lakh at the earliest.
JTDC managing director Sunil Kumar presided a meeting with East Singhbhum deputy commissioner Amitabh Kaushal at the district collectorate and made a plea for clearing of the dues.
The request was made after the East Singhbhum deputy commissioner sought information on steps taken to repair the buses lying at the depot.
The dues are pending for use of city buses during National Games 2011 and Panchayat elections 2010 in Jamshedpur. Confirming about the request, JTDC MD said that the deputy commissioner has assured to clear the dues within a week.
“We are hopeful to receive the dues and are will use the amount for the repair of the bus depot. We have also sought a fund to the tune of Rs 2 crore from state urban development for smooth movement of the buses in Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad,” the MD revealed. East Singhbhum deputy commissioner Amitabh Kaushal said that administration will pave way to clear
the dues.
Notably, Jamshedpur was allotted a fleet of 50-odd city buses when the service was launched as part of the JNNURM in August 2010.
Out of the 50 city buses allotted only 13 are running on three-four routes while most of these buses remain stranded at the Baridih depot due to lack of maintenance. The bus service was launched in the city in September , 2010 as part of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) .But, since then it has been plagued by myriad problems.
In the past 24 months, bus drivers and auxiliary staff have ceased work as many as 21 times over non-payment of dues. At present, 20 city bus ferries 10,000-odd passengers along seven routes daily.