KSRTC takes away Volvo buses from drivers

KOCHI: KSRTC’s decision to make the 13 specially trained drivers drive regular buses and not AC Volvo buses at the Ernakulam Depot has kicked up a row among employees. According to the exclusively trained drivers, who belong to the first batch of the drivers specially trained in Bangalore in 2009, the training had cost KSRTC a sum of `5 lakh.
“We were given six days of exclusive training and were provided with the detailed information on how to run the Volvo buses. The drivers who are being trained now are all locally trained and do not have any technical know-how on running these buses,” said Abdul Rasheed, one of the 13 Volvo bus drivers, who has approached the High Court in this regard.
Rasheed alleges that the locally-trained Volvo drivers are not even qualified to drive the buses which have signages and instructions in English.
“When we joined the training, the minimum qualification was set at being tenth pass by the Volvo company. However, most of the drivers who are locally trained by KSRTC are not even tenth-pass,” he said.
“Recently, two buses were damaged because the drivers could not read the signal indicating the presence of water in the diesel tank,” he added.
The specially trained drivers said that the they joined the training session as a circular issued in 2009 stated that the trained drivers would be exclusively utilised for the Volvo bus services. However, now they say that they are being asked to drive the other buses instead.
According to another petitioner, the decision has been taken to meet the interests of various unions. “KSRTC is saying that the decision was taken keeping in mind the seniority among drivers. Most of the locally-trained drivers are seniors and they should be given priority,” he said.
Meanwhile, the row has slowed the process of the preparation of a new schedule for the KSRTC bus drivers at Ernakulam. The KSRTC (Ernakulam) officials said, “The petition has only delayed the preparation of the schedule, which in the long run will create problems for the drivers.”
CITU members have come out strongly against the petitioners stating that they should not be included in the schedule. “They have no right to be part of the schedule.
KSRTC has always given priority to the seniors and these petitioners are being unfair,”  they said. “We request the authorities to implement the schedule without considering the petitioners. We will go on strike if our demands are not met,” a CITU member said.
Volvo Nodal Officer at Thiruvananthapuram Sharaf Mohammed said, “KSRTC has decided to give importance to the seniors because that is the policy of the Corporation.”