Transport PSEs aim to raise income, cut subsidy

The state transport department has directed the five transport corporations in West Bengal to raise their income by Rs100 crore by January next year so that the annual subsidy bill of Rs330 crore is significantly reduced.

It has asked the transport corporations including Calcutta State Transport Corporation (CSTC), West Bengal Surface Transport Corporation (WBSTC), North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC) and South Bengal State Transport Corporation (SBSTC) to ensure that proceed from tickets considering at least 60 per cent occupancy is submitted.

The state government now pays subsidy worth Rs330 crore annually to these transport corporations.

A major portion of the money goes for pension schemes and thereby has a social component, said Subhas Chakravorty, the state transport minister here at the function at the Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industries.

The government, therefore, could not stop the subsidy.

Instead, it has urged the corporations to raise their incomes.

The minister admitted that there was some misappropriation of funds when it came to submitting proceeds from ticket sales.

In another significant development, the Centre has already turned down the proposal for viability gap funding for the Nagerbazaar flyover project on August 18 this year.

Chakravorty alleged that this was because the Left Front had withdrawn support from the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in July and West Bengal is a Left Front ruled state.

Two more proposals, those of the 80 kilometre (km) long six-lane elevated ring road project and the 34km Light rapid transport system (LRTS) between Joka and Panihati were lying with the Centre awaiting approval for gap funding.

"We will go ahead with these projects even if the gap funding could not be arranged", Chakravorty claimed.

Around 10 bids were already submitted for the elevated ring road and the minister is hopeful that both the projects could be implemented within the next two years.

He declined to give out the amount of gap funding from the Centre that the state is currently pursuing.

He is likely to meet the external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee to discuss the issue of cooperation between the state and the central governments.