New Delhi: The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) has sought viability gap funding (VGF) of Rs 3,191.42 crore from the state government for its fleet of electric buses, officials said on Friday.
Speaking at a press conference, Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik said that of Rs 750 crore loss incurred by the corporation in the current financial year till February end, the loss of Rs 125.5 crore was attributable to electric buses procured from EV Trans Private Limited under the Gross Cost Contract.
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The accumulated loss of the corporation is Rs 12,000 crore, said the minister who is also the MSRTC's Chairman.
Sarnaik recently wrote to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, stating that the existing fleet of 9-metre and 12-metre electric buses has led to losses of Rs 161.31 crore since their operations began.
Losses could rise to Rs 718 crore in the next financial year, by which time the corporation expects to receive 1,230 e-buses of 9 metres and 1,678 e-buses of 12 metres from EV Trans, the letter said.
Without VGF of Rs 3,191.42 crore from the state government, it would be difficult for the corporation to carry out day-to-day operations, Sarnaik said.
While diesel buses cost around Rs 40 lakh each, a single electric bus costs approximately Rs 2 crore, said the minister.
"Diesel and electric buses cannot be compared directly, but we are paying Rs 24 extra per kilometre for electric buses compared to diesel buses," he said.
Given the state government's preference for eco-friendly transport, there should be no issue in providing VGF for electric buses, said Sarnaik.
"The ticket rate for diesel and electric buses is the same, and therefore we have demanded VGF from the government," he stated.
The chief secretary of Maharashtra recently held a meeting to discuss losses arising from electric buses, the minister informed.
MSRTC Vice Chairman and Managing Director Madhav Kusekar said the chief secretary asked the corporation to submit a revised proposal.
He further said that of the 5,150 electric buses to be supplied by EV Trans, 750 have been delivered so far.
Listing reasons for the losses, Kusekar said that in tehsil areas, passengers tend to prefer regular buses over electric ones. He also cited irregular supply of e-buses, for which the company has been granted extensions twice, as one of the reasons.
Contrary to the minister's remarks, however, Kusekar said that fares for electric buses are slightly higher than those for diesel buses.
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The Union government had provided a grant of Rs 50 lakh for the corporation's initial electric buses, which reduced their cost. No such grant was provided for the current batch, Kusekar pointed out.
According to Kusekar, the state government has provided a grant of Rs 20 lakh for only 1,000 e-buses. MSRTC has requested similar support for all 5,000 e-buses, which could result in savings of Rs 5 per kilometre for the corporation.
The MSRTC has imposed a penalty of Rs 48 crore on EV Trans for failing to supply buses as per schedule, but has not recovered the amount yet as the corporation has pending dues to the company, the official said.
MSRTC is one of the largest state transport corporations in the country, with a fleet of more than 15,000 buses and 86,000 employees. Over 55 lakh passengers travel daily by its buses.
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