BENGALURU: To get more incentives, some BMTC conductors under the Shakti scheme are issuing ‘zero tickets’ to destinations that are ahead of the stops women passengers intend to get down.
For instance, a woman passenger from Majestic to Shivajinagar is issued a ticket to a stop that is ahead of Shivajinagar. This is done because the ticket fare is high and the incentive earned is also high.
Bus conductors and drivers together earn an incentive of 3% of the money collected for the tickets issued in a day.
“I board a bus daily from CPRI Main Gate to Balekundri Circle. The ticket is issued for Shivajinagar. The cost to Balekundri Circle is Rs 15 while it is Rs 20 for Shivajinagar,” said Asha, an employee of a private company.
‘Stern action against errant conductors’
Some women passengers said they too were given tickets to destinations that were much ahead of their stops. “I was travelling from Majestic to Sirsi Circle and I was given a ticket to Nayandahalli, which is three stops ahead of my stop,” said Shanti, a commuter.
They said many do not question the conductors for issuing tickets to far away destinations as they are not paying for the same after the implementation of the Shakti scheme.
A BMTC conductor, who admitted to this, said, “One reason for this is to earn more incentives. But they also do it when they fall short of the regular fare collection on their routes as they do not want to come under the radar of the depot manager. For instance, if their route fetches Rs 5,000 and they have collected only Rs 3,500, then they will resort to issuing tickets to far away destinations to make up for the shortfall.” Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said some conductors do it for more incentives.
He referred to a viral video where a conductor is seen printing tickets just to inflate the total amount collected. Though the government reimburses the ticket cost to the bus corporations, conductors must issue tickets to the places as demanded by women passengers. BMTC officials will step up inspection. Stern action will be taken against errant conductors, he added.