MUMBAI: Within a year of increasing the lease tenure for private developers constructing Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus stands, the state cabinet on Tuesday approved a proposal to further increase this tenure from 60 years to 98 years. The first agreement will be for 49 years and extended for another 49. Some ministers raised questions but the move was eventually approved by the cabinet.
MSRTC, which has 598 bus stands and 251 bus depots across the state, has been providing affordable bus services for the last seven decades. Around 20 years ago, the state government came up with a policy to develop bus stands under the public private partnership (PPP) model. At that point, the lease period for private developers was fixed at 30 years, and 45 bus stands across the state were developed.
Currently, MSRTC faces a daily loss of ₹3 crore due to various passenger concessions such as free travel for girl students, 50% concession for women passengers and so on. With the accumulated loss of the last seven decades touching ₹10,300 crore, the government has now decided to take various measures to increase its revenue, among them the granting of contracts to private builders to redevelop MSRTC bus stands.
MSRTC officials revealed that at the meeting, deputy CM Ajit Pawar and some other ministers questioned the logic behind such a long lease tenure. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, on his part, brought up the issue of private developers sub-letting the land and said that care needed to be taken that this did not happen. After a discussion, the cabinet approved the proposal.
When contacted, transport minister Pratap Sarnaik stated that a 98-year lease would generate more revenue than a 60-year lease, ensure a longer period of business at the same location and would help to increase the income of MSRTC. “Unlike our earlier policy of taking an upfront payment along with renovated bus stands, the new policy demands a share in the builder’s commercial property,” he said. “Whoever offers a greater share in commercial space will get the contract. So we will get renovated bus stands free of cost and commercial space in the redeveloped premises, from which we can earn rental income.” When asked how much additional revenue MSRTC expected from the new policy, Sarnaik said it had not been calculated yet but was much more than yielded by the earlier policy.
MSRTC will soon decide on the list of bus stands to be thrown open for redevelopment. Every bidder will have to take at least three bus stands, one in a city, the second at tehsil level and another in a rural area so that bus stands in villages too get the benefit of the policy.
Sarnaik also discussed a government app that is being planned to provide auto rickshaw and taxi services. “MSRTC will soon launch this app which we have decided to call ‘Chhava app’,” he said. “It will ensure a good remuneration for drivers and owners and safety for passengers.”