Those responsible for flawed MSRTC tender will face action: CM Fadnavis

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday promised a probe into a tender process for leasing buses for MSRTC which is estimated to have caused a loss of Rs 1,700 crore.

Speaking in the legislative council, he said work orders were issued at the level of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) through "collusion" with contractors, and action will be taken against those responsible within a month.

Fadnavis was responding to a starred question raised by Congress's Rajesh Rathod.

"The work orders for the tender process to acquire 1,310 buses were issued when the government formation was underway (after the November 2024 elections), a full cabinet was not in place, and neither the chief minister nor the deputy chief minister had approved it," he said.

 

"This led to an estimated loss of around Rs 1,700 crore to the state exchequer. Following this revelation, the tender process was halted, and an inquiry was ordered under the additional secretary of the Transport Department," Fadnavis said.

Notably, the transport portfolio is handled by Pratap Sarnaik who belongs to the Shiv Sena, a party headed by deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.