Recently there was a press conference where the Delhi Transport Corporation gave a report on the working of the corporation. According to the report, some positive changes have happened in the corporation. The DTC has worked out a comprehensive strategy to revitalize the organization. I want to share the report with readers as it has been reported in the media only in bits and pieces.

To begin with, each DTC depot has been declared an independent cost center by way of signing of an internal MoU between Depot Managers and Corporate office, effective from November last year. The strategy focuses broadly on four things – total operational efficiency, cost consciousness to stabilize the bottom-line, new management practices and customer orientation. As a result of the integrated approach, supplemented by depot-wise MoU, working deficit has come down to Rs 19.50 crore during December 2004 (from an average of Rs 22.58 crore per month earlier) showing thereby an improvement of Rs 3.08 crore during the month.

For the remaining gap of Rs 19.50 crore, DTC plans to rationalise city bus fare structure, which will have an impact of Rs 3 crore. Reimbursement of social costs being borne by DTC in the form of consessional travel facility offered to various sections of society would have an impact of Rs 6.08 crore. Property development and publicity/advertisement plan for its depots and terminals located at prime locations is expected to have an impact of Rs 4.5 crore. Augmentatiojn of city bus fleet with addition of 600 buses will raise Rs 3.5 crore for the corporation.

These recent changes and restructuring of DTC happened during the short tenure of former DTC CMD & Transport Commissioner Rajeev Talwar. Now since he has left, I just hope work now doesn’t stall here only but it only continues from here. Regarding the other initiatives as part of restructuring DTC, I’ll talk in my next column.