E-Paper
Vehicle tracking system to be installed in all HRTC buses: Agnihotri
Talking of the decision taken during the meeting, Agnihotri said that 500 old and unfit buses of the HRTC will be taken out of service within the next two months and replaced by 747 new buses, as part of a major overhaul of the corporation’s fleet and services.
Vehicle tracking system for real-time location tracking will be installed in all HRTC buses. This was stated by deputy chief minister Mukesh Agnihotri on Friday after the 162nd meeting of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) Board of Directors over two days.
Talking of the decision taken during the meeting, Agnihotri said that 500 old and unfit buses of the HRTC will be taken out of service within the next two months and replaced by 747 new buses, as part of a major overhaul of the corporation’s fleet and services.
Talking of fleet modernisation, Agnihotri said, “Buses giving mileage below 2.5 km per litre will be removed from service. Between 9 and 15 years, clear repair cost parameters have been fixed. Certain parameters for repair cost on a yearly basis have also been fixed.Over the next two months, 500 buses will be phased out.”
He said 297 electric buses have already been ordered, tenders for 250 diesel buses are being reissued, and procurement is underway for 100 mini buses (24-seater) and 100 tempo travellers.
“In total, 747 new vehicles will be added to the fleet, while 500 old vehicles will be removed, so that the public does not face inconvenience,” he said.
He said, “HRTC was the first corporation in the state to implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). HRTC is a corporation which implemented the Old Pension Scheme. Around 9,099 employees benefited from OPS. At present, we have more than 10,000 employees, of whom nearly 9,000 have opted for OPS after discontinuing the New Pension Scheme.”
“There were about 170 employees who had retired under the New Pension Scheme and were getting a very small pension. We gave them an opportunity to come under OPS, and more than 170 retirees have benefited,” he said.
“For 696 pensioners aged above 74 years, we ensured revision of pension from 2016 and completed the process of releasing ₹23 crore. Another 222 retired employees who were not getting pension have now been granted pension, and ₹29 crore has been credited to their accounts,” he said.
