THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The State government on Wednesday removed senior IPS officer Tomin J Thachankery as the Managing Director of the crisis-hit Kerala State Road Transport Corporation.

Kochi city police commissioner M P Dinesh has been appointed in his place. Thachankery, who is the state crime records bureau ADGP, was holding the additional charge of the corporation.

The decision to remove Thachankery was taken at the cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday, a government release said.

The loss making corporation had recently terminated 3,861 empanelled (temporary) bus conductors following a direction from the high court.

The KSRTC had registered a record collection of Rs 45.2 crore, a threefold increase, in collection from its Nilackal-Pamba service at Sabarimala this year against Rs 15.2 crore during the same period last year.

The Opposition Congress-led UDF members had raised the termination of the KSRTC employees in the state assembly and walked out Monday alleging that the LDF government had not objected in the high court to the removal of the temporary conductors and had violated all employment laws.

Dr V Venu, Principal Secretary Forests and Wild life, has been appointed Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue) in place of P H Kurian, who will retire on Thursday.

In the cabinet meeting the chief minister was of the pinion that the officer at the top levels should be the one who would cooperate with the KSRTC employees. According to the government evaluation, M P Dinesh is one such officer. He has proved this as Kochi City Police Commissioner.

Transport Minister A K Saseendran did not react much on this.

The steps taken by Thachankary to make KSRTC profitable was opposed by unions but this had not discouraged Thachankary, who went on to carry out his decisions.

This had resulted in controversy.

The Opposition had also the other day alleged that Thachankary heeded to the chief minister’s instructions and turned a deaf ear to the Transport Minister.

However, the KSRTC was able to distribue last month’s salary from its own income and this was seen as the administrative excellence of Thachankary.