ST Earns ₹1 Crore Daily, Bus Stands Still Filthy

The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) is collecting nearly ₹1 crore every day from passengers through a ₹2 cleanliness surcharge. However, despite the additional revenue, commuters continue to face unhygienic conditions at bus stations, depots and onboard buses, with the situation worsening during the monsoon.

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To improve passenger amenities, the state transport corporation launched a statewide cleanliness campaign on June 1, charging every passenger an additional ₹2 per ticket. With nearly 50 lakh passengers travelling daily, the corporation generates around ₹1 crore each day exclusively for sanitation-related services.

The responsibility of maintaining cleanliness across more than 560 bus depots, bus stations, public toilets and ST buses has been assigned to a private agency. However, nearly one-and-a-half months after the campaign began, passengers claim the ground reality remains largely unchanged.

Maharashtra’s ST network, considered the lifeline of rural transportation, operates around 14,000 buses every day. Despite the significant revenue generated through the surcharge, commuters allege they are not receiving the level of cleanliness promised by the corporation.

The situation has become even more difficult during the rainy season. Dirty toilets, foul smell, clogged drainage, broken sanitation facilities, overflowing garbage bins, filthy wash basins and unhygienic bus station premises continue to trouble passengers across several depots.

Women, senior citizens and families travelling with children are among the worst affected, as waterlogging, mud and poor maintenance have made bus stations increasingly uncomfortable and unsafe.

Passengers have also raised repeated complaints over the cleanliness of waiting halls, bus platforms and the interiors of ST buses, highlighting a significant gap between the corporation’s cleanliness campaign and its implementation on the ground.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik stated that the contract had been awarded to a subsidiary of a company known for maintaining high-profile government buildings, with the objective of improving sanitation standards across the ST network.

Amid growing criticism, the Transport Minister has convened a review meeting on August 1 to assess the cleanliness drive. The meeting is expected to evaluate the performance of the private contractor, examine the utilisation of funds collected through the surcharge, review the actual sanitation status at bus depots and discuss corrective measures to improve passenger facilities.

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