Latest news with #KarnatakaStateRoadTransportCorporation
The Hindu
5 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
State to increase number of electric vehicles in phases, says Transport Minister
The State government will support the State-run transport undertakings to slowly increase the proportion of electric buses, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said in Belagavi on Friday. 'Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation has already introduced a large fleet of electric buses in Bengaluru. Other STUs will be introducing electric vehicles in phases. . Electric buses will be provided in all districts. Kalayn Karnataka Road Transport Corporation will soon introduced 300 buses in Belagavi, which will include 100 electric buses,'' he said. He was speaking at the inauguration of the new office of the joint commissioner of transport and Regional Transport Office near Triveni circle in Belagavi. The office complex has been built at a cost of ₹10 crore. The Department of Transport is one of the revenue generating departments in the government. But its functioning was affected due to long standing vacancies in the department. The State government has begun the process of filling vacancies in Transport Department. Once it is completed, there will be perceptible changes, he said. He appealed to officers and staff to reduce the middle men menace in the department offices. The officers and staff of the office should work towards providing quick and efficient services to the public, he said. He urged officials to deal strictly with traffic violations like loud horns and bright lights. Public Works and District in charge Minister Satish Jarkiholi thanked Mr. Reddy for the new office complex in Belagavi and other works. 'The construction of the Belagavi city bus stand, taken up under the Smart City scheme is nearly complete. It will be inaugurated soon. The Central and State governments have shared the cost of the project equally. The automated driving path was constructed in Bailhongal at the cost of ₹5 crore. It will help train KKRTC drivers in large numbers,' he said. He demanded 500 buses for the Belagavi district and construction of more bus stands in rural areas. He said PWD would work with the Transport Department in this. Satish Jarkiholi gave some suggestions to revitalise the Transport Department. 'The department should provide advice and instructions to the public, as well as provide necessary training to vehicle drivers. Stricter rules should be implemented for issuing vehicle driving licenses and licenses should be issued. This could greatly reduce the number of accidents,' he said. He said officers should identify old vehicles and ask the owners to renew their documents. Tractor users who cause inconvenience by using loud horns and by not using tail lamps, should be fined, Satish Jarkiholi said. Women and Child Development Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar said that Belagavi district was among the biggest in the State and needed more buses. She said that she frequently got complaints about agents harassing common people in Transport Department offices. She urged officers to extend courtesy and prompt service. She opposed criticism by the opposition against the State government that there were no development works being taken up. 'Our government has not lagged behind in development. It is taking up several development projects along with guarantee schemes,' she said. 'There is not a single example of the BJP governments in the past bringing schemes for the poor. Our opponents do not want to deliver guarantee schemes to the people, they have never done anything good for the people. They are only busy criticising our schemes. But now that our guarantee schemes have succeeded, they are copying them and using them as poll promises in Bihar and other States, she said. MLAs Asif Seth and Mahantesh Kaujalagi, Transport and Road Safety Commissioner Yogish A.M, Police Commissioner Borase Bhushan Gulabarao, Joint Commissioner of Transport S. Omkareshwari, Zilla Panchayat Chief Executive Officer Rahul Shinde, Additional Commissioner Halaswamy, Regional Transport Officer Nagesh Mundase, other officers like B.P. Umashankar, Purushottam, C.T. Murthy and many other officials were present.
New Indian Express
6 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
KSRTC staff on strike from August 5 over pay hike
BENGALURU: The Joint Action Committee (JAC) of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation has announced an indefinite strike from August 5, if their demands are not met. The strike will affect lakhs of people who depend on state-operated buses for travel. Pay hike with effect from January 1, 2024, settlement of pending salary arrears for 38 months (January 1, 2020, to February 28, 2023) and wage revision to be in effect for four years (from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2027), deputing only corporation drivers to operate electric buses instead of those deputed by private players, scientific revision of Form 4 (which assigns timings for each bus route) are some of their major demands of nine pointers submitted to the CM along with the strike notice dated July 15, 2025. The JAC, led by the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC)-affiliated KSRTC Staff and Workers' Federation, with the support of five other unions, announced at a press conference here on Wednesday that they had served the strike notice to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. It recalled previous instances of having withdrawn their strike after promises from the CM, who they claimed had taken a negative stance against their demands, and condemned his move at a meeting on July 4. In their letter, the JAC said, 'In the July 4 meeting, you (CM) rejected our demands. You questioned the previous government's order, manipulated it without understanding the order and stated that there are no pending dues to be cleared, and that the next wage revision will only be in 2027.' They said the CM's stand has come as a shock to the workers, and recalled how workers had strived for the rollout of the government's Shakti scheme, which helped RTCs get awards, and accused the CM of delivering grave injustice.
Deccan Herald
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Deccan Herald
Karnataka govt's Shakti scheme registers 500 cr free bus rides
'Sakthi' scheme, announced by the Congress government in Karnataka, providing free bus travel for women, crossed the 500 crore free rides mark on Monday, officials said. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, his deputy D K Shivakumar, and Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy celebrated the occasion by symbolically issuing the 500th crore free ticket to a woman passenger here. 'Shakti' scheme, which provides free bus travel for all women domiciled in the state, is among the five guarantee schemes implemented by the Congress government on coming to power. Launched on June 11, 2023, the scheme has so far cost the government Rs 12,669 crore, officials said. "As this is a special occasion I have symbolically issued the 500th crore free ticket to a woman passenger," Siddaramaiah later told reporters. The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) said, by offering free bus travel to women, the scheme has significantly contributed to the economic, social, educational, professional and health empowerment of women across the state. Before the launch of the Shakti Scheme, around 85.84 lakh passengers were travelling by bus daily, now this number has risen to 1.17 crore passengers per day, highlighting the scheme's massive impact, it said in a release. Pointing at the operational expansion post-Shakti scheme roll out, it said the number of scheduled services increased from 21,164 (pre-Shakti) to 23,635 (post-Shakti), and the total number of buses increased from 23,948 to 26,130, including the replacement of 2,828 old vehicles. According to KSRTC, to mark the milestone, the CM, the Deputy CM and the transport minister presented and felicitated 30 women passengers, including students, senior citizens, and transgender individuals, with Ilkal sarees, sweets and roses. The woman who received the 500th crore Shakti ticket was honoured by the chief minister with a shawl, floral garland, and a memento. Members of Vijayapura's 'Odala Dhwani Stree Sangha' (women's group), empowered by the Shakti Scheme, started producing and selling organic rotis and holiges (sweet) in Bengaluru, generating lakhs in revenue. As a gesture of gratitude, they presented rotis to the CM, Deputy Chief Minister, and the transport minister, the release said.
The Hindu
14-07-2025
- The Hindu
2.57 crore women in Udupi, 9.54 crore in DK availed of Shakti scheme
Over 2.57 crore women have travelled by availing of the Shakti scheme benefits since its launch on June 11, 2023, in Udupi district, with the government bearing ₹90.1 crore cost, said District Guarantee Implementation Committee president Ashok Kumar Kodavoor, on Monday. He was speaking at the celebration of road transport corporations of the State crossing the 500-crore mark in terms of the number of women passengers who have benefited from the scheme, with the government reimbursing more than ₹12,000 crore to the four RTCs of the State. Speaking after inaugurating the celebrations at the Udupi Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) bus terminal, Deputy Commissioner T.K. Swaroopa said the Shakti scheme has boosted women empowerment initiatives of the government. The free travel facility for women, girl students and sexual minorities has enhanced the confidence of the beneficiaries, too, she said. It has helped women to undertake self-employment, get an education and undertake other routine work. Former Minister Vinay Kumar Sorake said the scheme has empowered women, most of whom were confined within the four walls of their houses, to experience the world around them and grow. Government schemes of Shakti, Gruha Lakshmi, Anna Bhaga, Gruha Juyothi and Yuvanidhi have provided economic independence to women, he said. On the occasion, the dignitaries offered puja to a KSRTC bus and distributed flowers and sweets to the public. 9.54 crore travellers A similar celebration was organised at the KSRTC Bejai terminal here, led by Ivan D'Souza, MLC. He said the Shakti scheme has improved the economic condition of many families in the State, and women could also travel to places of their choice without any hindrance. It has also helped girl students from economically weaker sections to pursue education, he said. KSRTC Senior Divisional Controller of Mangaluru, Rajesh Shetty, said as many as 9.54 women travelled by availing of the benefits of the Shakti scheme in Dakshina Kannada district with an estimated cost of ₹322 crore to the government.
The Hindu
14-07-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
KSRTC launches ‘Dhwanispandana Yojane' to aid visually impaired passengers
The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has taken a major step towards inclusive public transportation by launching 'Dhwanispandana Yojane', an initiative to assist visually impaired passengers with easier and independent mobility. Minister for Transport Ramalinga Reddy launched the initiative at the city bus stand in Mysuru on Monday. Under this initiative, audio device systems have been installed on nearly 200 buses operating on various routes in Mysuru city. These devices can be activated by visually impaired users through a remote key, which announces route numbers and other details, enabling passengers to identify their desired buses independently. As part of the programme, 400 visually impaired persons have been trained to use these devices. During the launch, a few of them were given the user units to facilitate their easy and independent travel. A similar initiative has already been implemented in Bengaluru city, where 125 buses have been fitted with such devices. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Reddy said steps would be taken to ensure that these audio devices are inbuilt in new buses added to the existing KSRTC fleet in the future. He said the initiative has been introduced to support visually challenged persons in selecting and boarding buses safely and confidently. The project has been taken up in collaboration with GIZ India under the Green Urban Mobility Partnership (GUMP) programme of the Union governments and Germany. The GIZ India is supporting KSRTC's SUMACA project to improve urban mobility and transport services in Mysuru city. The initiative has been developed by Raised Lines Foundation and IIT Delhi, with training support from the Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement and the All India Institute of Speech and Hearing. The device comprises three components: bus unit, remote, and speaker. When a visuall impaired passenger presses the 'Find' button on the remote at the bus stand, it scans for buses within range and announces their details. Upon selecting a specific bus using the 'Select' button, the information is transmitted to the bus unit, which alerts the driver and conductor that a visually impaired passenger is about to board. This ensures the bus halts safely for a longer duration, allowing the passenger to board independently without needing external assistance. Congress MLA and former Minister Tanveer Sait, Karnataka State Guarantee Scheme Implementation Committee vice-chairperson Pushpa Amarnath, Divisional Controller (urban division) Veeresh K.T., elected representatives, and officials were present on the occasion.
