BENGALURU: The pandemic seems to have thrown cold water on the plans of the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) to expand its fleet. It was all set to purchase 1,500 diesel buses at a cost of Rs 600 crore. But the Covid-targeted measures pushed the transport utility into a financial crisis, and the funds for the new vehicles will be diverted to pay the salaries of its staffers, sources said.
The corporation is now set for three months in terms of salaries. The funds are said to be diverted after September as the procurement is now on hold, sources said.The state government had released Rs 426 crore for June and July. Deputy Chief Minister Laxman Savadi had also said that the state government released Rs 961 crore for all the state transport undertakings and this will suffice till September.
The BMTC board had approved the procurement of the BS-VI diesel buses after approval from the state government. BS-VI emission norms had come into effect in the country from April 1.The state government was to provide Rs 100 crore per annum for seven years in the form of loan subsidy to BMTC for acquiring the new buses. The corporation operates only 1,500 to 2,000 buses and the new buses were needed to match the current population of the city.