THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Although the KSRTC had expected Rs 2,000 crore in the budget for its revival, it got only Rs 1,000 crore. This 1000 crore is nothing more than a regular share that it has been receiving for several years. The Finance Minister allotted Rs 1000 crore to the corporation by stating that the challenge before the government was to make KSRTC profitable by increasing revenue and cutting unnecessary expenses.
At the beginning of 2021, KSRTC was allotted Rs 1,000 crore for its revival. However, this amount was spent on salaries, pensions and diesel. An additional Rs 822 crore announced later was also spent in this manner. Although a special scheme for pensioners was expected, no such announcement was made.
Only Rs 50 crore for green vehicles
In the last budget, minister KN Balagopal had said that 3,000 KSRTC buses would be converted to CNG powered ones. Rs 100 crore was earmarked for the Rs 300 crore project. However, the corporation did not procure even a single bus.
This time, the government has sanctioned Rs 50 crore for converting diesel buses to CNG, LNG and electrical. The minister seemed to have conveniently forgotten the Rs 300 crore project. The state has been hearing about the green age since the 2016 budget. The then Finance Minister Thomas Isaac had also announced the purchase of CNG and electric buses.
Rs 160 crore for Kochi Water Metro, Ro-Ro