Daijiworld Media Network - Hassan (SP)

Hassan, Jan 7: The Lokayukta has registered cases against four KSRTC employees including its technical head here, based on the allegation that some employees of the division here have been manipulating with the system of disposing off old chassis as scrap. These employees have been accused of interchanging chassis numbers of different buses that have already run for many years, and thereby arranging for selling of relatively new chassis as scrap.

The complaint was filed based on a complaint filed by district president of Human rights and prevention of corruption committee, M G Ramesh. Head of the technical department, S P Nagaraju, workshop supervisor,Vijayashree, employees supervisor, Shobha, and skilled worker, Kaleem Pasha, have been named as accused.

It is said that as per KSRTC rules, buses which have run over seven lacs kilometres are sold as scrap. Nagaraju and three others have been accused of conniving in the matter of inter-changing of chassis number of old chassis that have run over seven lacs kilometres with that of chassis that have covered only five to six lacs kilometres. Allegedly, newer chassis are sold as scrap, whereas older ones continue to run on the roads because their numbers have been meddled with, it is said.

The complainant has given 24 bus numbers belonging to Hassan division, in which cases he claims, chassis numbers have been changed. He has calculated the loss suffered by KSRTC in these transactions as Rs 25 lacs. It is said that the Lokayukta officials registered the case after finding during their random check that some chassis numbers had indeed been changed as above.

Kalyankumar, divisional controller of KSRTC Hassan said he was surprised to hear such a complaint. He said it is unlikely that such a thing would have happened.