Mumbai: Ahead of the foundation day of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) Undertaking on August 7, commuters and civil society groups in the city have flagged two key issues plaguing its operations, covering the inordinate delay in delivery of electric buses (e-buses) from manufacturers, and a 58% hike in the per kilometre rate paid to wet lease operators for running the buses.
According to sources in the BEST, the undertaking placed two separate orders with bus manufacturer Olectra Greentech for supply of 2,100 and 2,400 single decker e-buses in 2022 and 2024, respectively. But it has received only 615 buses from the first order and 50 from the second order, with nearly 85% of the deliveries pending.
“We fear that deliveries from the first order for 2,100 e-buses will get delayed further as deliveries under the second order have commenced,” said a BEST official.
Transport experts questioned the logic behind BEST placing a second order with Olectra even though its first order was far from being fulfilled.
“BEST should have ensured that the first order of 2,100 e-buses was executed before placing the second one,” said AV Shenoy, a transport expert and member of the civil society group, Mumbai Mobility Forum.
Shenoy blamed the dissolution of the BEST Committee in 2022 for the oversight in placing orders and the lack of monitoring over bus supplies.
“Whoever is in charge of BEST should ensure that buses join the fleet as soon as possible,” he said.
Another issue flagged by commuters and civil society groups is the difference in running costs under the two orders.
Although Evey Trans, a subsidiary of Olectra Greentech, is the wet lease operator for both orders, the operating cost for the second order was increased manifold without any change in circumstances or underlying contract conditions, they said.
As per the contract between Evey Trans and BEST, the per-kilometre operating cost for buses under the first order was ₹47-57 per kilometre, whereas for the second order, it was ₹64-79, said BEST officials.
The actual rate paid to the wet lease operator depended on the central government subsidy for electric vehicles, the officials said.
“On average, BEST pays ₹50 per kilometre and ₹79 per kilometre (to the wet lease operator) for buses under the first and second contract, respectively,” an official told HT on condition of anonymity.
Officials from Olectra Greentech and Evey Trans corroborated the average rates mentioned by BEST officials, saying charges were levied as per the respective contracts.
Former BEST Committee member Sheetal Mhatre said the 58% hike in operating cost was proof of the failure of the wet lease model, especially because there was no change in the subsidies given to wet lease operators.
“We went through the contracts which clearly mention that the wet lease operator pays only ₹1 per bus per year to BEST for charging and parking their vehicles at BEST depots. There are other heavy subsidies too which the wet lease operator gets,” said Mhatre.
“BEST has not been able to prove that the wet lease model has helped in curtailing massive losses in revenue. It is paying massive amounts to wet lease operators who are unable to maintain the desired quality,” said Hussain Indorewala, an urban researcher and member of the civil society group Aamchi Mumbai, Aamchi BEST (AMAB), which has called for protests at all 27 BEST depots in the city on August 7. Representatives from the Congress and other opposition parties are likely to join the protests.