BHOPAL: Taking note of a plea over non-disbursement of salaries to staffers running low-floor buses in city, a local court here has directed parent employers--Bhopal City Link Limited (BCLL) as well as BMC-- and immediate employer and bus operator Durgamba Motors to settle the issue by July 20.
Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) has to clear Rs 5 crore dues to Durgamba Motors- the bus operator.
Bhopal City Yaan Chalak/Parichalak Trade Union had moved District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) after the bus drivers, conductors, and technicians deployed in the low-floor busses were not disbursed salaries during three months of lockdown.
The bus staffers including the technicians are immediate employees of Durgamba Motors Operators, however, BMC being parent employers is one of the concerned parties.
Pawan Kumar Singh, BMC additional commissioner, said, “The court has instructed us to intervene into the matter as we are parent employers. BMC has to clear Rs 5 crore dues to the bus operator. We have instructed bus operators to clear the salary distribution to bus drivers, conductors and technicians and other staff.”
Advocate Dr Rajesh Sharma said, “The court has instructed the concerned parties to settle the issue by July 20. So now onus lies on BMC, BCLL and Bus Operators to settle the issue and disburse the pending salaries to bus staffers.”
The Bus service in the capital city operates on Public Private Partnership Mode. The concept was based on setting up of a SPV as a public limited company, which clearly demarcated the role of the market and the government. Accordingly BCLL was set up with the BMC and Bhopal Development Authority (BDA) as stakeholders. The management of the company was entrusted to the Board of Directors headed by the collector.
