Enquiry into false fitness certificates to drivers: DTC to HC

Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) has started an enquiry against doctors who gave a clean bill of health to drivers who were earlier declared unfit by its medical board, the state-run transporter today informed the Delhi High Court.
DTC also said that it is verifying licences of its drivers, as per the court's directions, and those without valid driving licences are not being allowed to drive buses.
The oral submissions were made by the authority before a bench of justices B D Ahmed and S Mridul which on July 16 had asked DTC to ensure no person without a valid driving licence or who is medically unfit drives its buses on the city roads.

The bench directed DTC to file an affidavit within three weeks "indicating progress made by it in the matter and the current status".
Meanwhile, the court while hearing a plea for a CBI probe into the recruitment of drivers, remarked, "CBI is doing nothing. They only collect paper. Tons of paper."
The court made the observations while hearing a plea by an NGO which alleged that most of the over 4000 DTC drivers recruited in 2007-08 are colour-blind and sought that they be medically re-examined.

The PIL filed by NGO, Azaad Dasta Sankalp Humara, through advocate Vishnu Sharma, also sought "an impartial probe by a Special Investigation Team or CBI into the illegal and fraudulent appointments conducted for the posts of drivers in Delhi Transport Corporation in 2008".

The NGO has alleged that of the 4415 drivers recruited in 2008, over 850 were found to be medically unfit by the DTC medical board.
Thereafter, another medical board was constituted and about 56 candidates, who were earlier found unfit, were examined by Guru Nanak Eye Centre which had declared majority of them as fit, the petition said.