A slew of sops for RTC staff

HYDERABAD: Chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao announced a slew of benefits for the Telangana Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) employees on Sunday and assured to pay them salaries for the 55 days when they had struck work, an increment and increased their retirement age from 58 to 60.

The decisions were among several benefits announced by the government in a first-of-itskind luncheon hosted by the CM at Pragati Bhavan, which saw five workers from all 97 depots in the state, transport minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar, RTC managing director Sunil Sharma and other officials in attendance.

The CM said he will instruct the MLAS and MPS to travel in RTC buses once a month and expressed hope that RTC would become profitable soon. He also said that an amount of ~1,000 crore will be allocated to RTC in the next budget. The RTC workers will receive their salaries, inclusive of the strike period, on Monday, he added.

Slamming the trade unions, he said, “Unions are responsible for the present position of RTC. We will not conduct any elections for the recognised unions for next two years.” He ordered setting up of a welfare board with two employees from each depot.

For the employees who died during the strike period, one job will be given to a member of their family within eight days, and ~two lakh per family will be paid by the government.

Employees working on temporary basis will be made permanent in the TSRTC. A housing scheme will also be worked out. Bus conductors will not be penalised if a passenger does not take a ticket.

KCR stated that the employees suffering with colour blindness will be given alternative work and the women workers are to end their duties by 8 pm. The CM instructed officials to provide toilets, dress change rooms and lunch rooms separately for women in the depots.

Women employees will be given maternity leaves, child care leaves on par with the government employees. Khaki uniform will be changed for women.