Covid fear worries RTC drivers, conductors

Life is more or less the same for employees of the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC). Bus stations and depots in the city are bustling with activity, betraying no indications of a global pandemic. However, many of the corporation’s employees, mainly drivers and conductors, are a worried lot.

Several employees we spoke to said that though they are at high risk because of the public-facing nature of their job, they are not being given sanitisers or masks. It may be noted that the efficacy of face masks in stopping the virus’s transmission is not proven and is highly debatable. A woman conductor waiting for passengers to board her inter-district bus at Jubilee Bus Station had tied a handkerchief across her mouth and nose.

“I am very scared of reporting to work. But what other choice do I have?” she asked. She said that though the buses are cleaned every night, it doesn’t help calm her nerves. “If it is my destiny, I will get Coronavirus (Covid-19),” she said with a sheepish grin.

A driver working at the Mehdipatnam depot said he was upset that the government was hanging them out to dry. “Our seniors told us that we would

SEVERAL EMPLOYEES said that though they are at high risk because of the publicfacing nature of their job, they are not being given sanitisers, masks.

soon get some hand sanitisers and masks. This was a week ago. There is no update on this,” he said. A driver from JBS, when asked about being given sanitisers and masks, burst out laughing: “They made us beg a few months ago when we asked for a raise. You think they will give us sanitisers?” he said, referring to the recent TSRTC employees’ strike. Some employees are upset that most employee unions have gone silent after the strike, and there is no one to fight for them now. The employees and drivers at JBS said the station and the buses are being cleaned thrice a day. However, one driver said the buses are not being cleaned as well as TSRTC officials are telling the media. “Only the exterior of the bus gets a proper wet wash. The insides are just wiped clean,” he said. Two other employees from Sangareddy and Mehdipatnam confirmed this. Many employees are, surprisingly, nonchalant about Covid-19. They say the virus is “not in India” and “wouldn’t survive our temperature”. They also admitted to not washing their hands regularly.

An official at JBS, who was wearing a mask while manning his desk, refused to answer on whether employees would be given masks and sanitisers. He, however, said that the employees were trained in the necessary preventive measures.

A senior divisional level TSRTC official, while refusing to go on record on anything related to Covid19, said measures were underway to help the drivers and conductors.

“We will come up with a solution soon. The conductors are especially at risk since they come in direct contact with the general public,” he said.