IAS officer appointed MSRTC chief days after Maharashtra transport minister Pratap Sarnaik praises Karnataka bus services

The determination comes days aft the recently appointed authorities Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik took complaint of the ministry and praised the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) for its services and efficiency. Sarnaik’s remarks, made amid his caller sojourn to the Congress-ruled neighbouring state, person reportedly go a talking constituent successful Maharashtra’s governmental circles.

During the two-day sojourn to Karnataka, which began connected February 1, Sarnaik met Karnataka’s Transport Minister Dr Ramalinga Reddy on with officials from some states, too touring the KSRTC office successful Bengaluru and observing assorted premium services, including luxury buses.

He appreciated however KSRTC ran the services safely and much punctually compared to backstage buses. “The long-distance ‘prestige service’ of the Karnataka authorities transport work is precise fashionable and is simply a large illustration of hospitality management. It is imaginable to bash a akin experimentation successful Maharashtra too,” the Shiv Sena curate had said portion visiting the KSRTC office successful Bengaluru.

Speaking astir the caller appointment, a Sena person said, “Traditionally the station has been held by a governmental fig but Sethi, an further main secretary-rank serviceman presently serving arsenic the state’s transport secretary, has present taken over, arsenic per a gazette notification. This intelligibly seems to beryllium a determination to undermine the Shiv Sena minister.”

This is, however, not the archetypal clip an IAS serviceman has been appointed to the post. In 1991, M K Hamid, different IAS officer, held the position. The relation is considered provisional, with nary fixed tenure. Sethi succeeds Bharat Gogawale, a Shiv Sena legislator aligned with the Shinde faction, who resigned aft being included successful the caller Cabinet led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Sarnaik had precocious urged Fadnavis to name a caller president promptly.

During his Karnataka visit, Sarnaik was shown the facilities connected their buses ranging from Wi-Fi to urinals connected long-distance services too being informed of e-ticket and online summons booking facilities. The curate recalled Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s absorption to follow bully practices underway successful different states and said the inaugural was taken up to larn astir Karnataka’s celebrated long-distance services arsenic good arsenic to survey their determination transport management, and inducement schemes for employees.

MSRTC operates a fleet of astir 14,000 buses, serving astir 55 lakh passengers daily, and employs astir 90,000 people. In caller years, the corp has faced aggregate challenges, including fiscal losses, an aging fleet, worker strikes, and a diminution successful ridership. To code immoderate of these issues, it implemented a 14.95 per cent fare summation past period successful an effort to curb regular fiscal losses.

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