Cash-crunched KSRTC unable to clear liabilities
The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) has submitted before the Kerala High Court that since the Corporation is facing very severe financial crisis, it cannot clear liabilities arising from the motor accidents.
However, with its limited resources, all earnest efforts are being taken to settle claims of the injured persons and their dear ones at the earliest, P Suresh Kumar, Chief Law Officer of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation submitted.
The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation filed the affidavit in response to a petition filed by S Manmadan of Neendakara seeking a directive to insure all the buses or to maintain a fund in accordance with Section 146 of the Motor Vehicles’ Act.
The Corporation submitted that as of now, all Fast Passenger, Super Fast, Express and light Express buses of the Corporation are insured and all the new vehicles are subject to insurance.
In the meeting of the Board of Directors that was held in November 1988, it was decided to secure third party insurance coverage to all new vehicles of the Corporation and to entrust insurance responsibilities to National Insurance Company Ltd with its divisional office at Thiruvananthapuram and accorded it the sanction of the government.
It also submitted that better training is being given to reduce the frequency of accidents.
An accident monitoring and controlling system has been introduced to monitor and study the reasons of each accident and all earnest efforts are being taken by the Corporation to avoid accidents and to reduce the liability to pay compensation. The number of the accidents involving KSRTC buses is very less, it said.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice A M Shaffique dismissed the plea as not pressed by the petitioner.