Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Apr 27: All the four road transport corporation, Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, Bangalore Metro Transport Corporation, Northwest Road Transport Corporation and Northeast Corporation will not be able to disburse salaries to its over 1.35 lac employees for the month of April.

Managing director of KSRTC, Shivayogi C Kalsad, has written a letter to the principal secretary (transport), Gaurav Gupta, attracting his attention to this situation. In the letter, Kalsad has said that the transport corporations have been paying 5.55 percent of their income to the government as motor vehicle tax every year. He said that the current situation is so bad that estimated Rs 497.48 crore for 2020-21 by way of motor vehicle tax cannot be paid. He has sought exemption from this payment.

During the year 2019-20, the four corporations had paid motor vehicle tax of Rs 375.44 crore. He has drawn the attention to the fact that the income of the corporations has completely dried up due to corona-related lockdown. He has requested the state government to extend helping hand and take the role of the food providers to the families of employees by extending special financial assistance package.

He has said that it is the primary motive of the corporation to release monthly salaries on the prescribed days to enable the staff and those dependent on them to lead their lives. As the operations of the corporations was suspended for the entire April month, there is no cash collection to back the payment, he has said, and requested the government to release grant, which he said is the only avenue on which the corporations can bank on to pay salaries.