Metro takeover moves ahead while TGSRTC merger remains pending in Telangana

The Telangana government's swift move to take over Hyderabad Metro Phase I has drawn comparisons with the pending merger of TGSRTC with the State government. While Metro expansion plans are progressing, RTC unions continue to await fulfilment of a key Congress election promise.

Hyderabad: The Congress government‘s urgency in taking over Hyderabad Metro Phase I is not reflected in its approach towards merging TGSRTC with the State government. The contrast has triggered speculation in various quarters.

Ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections, the Congress had promised RTC unions that TGSRTC would be merged with the State government. More than two-and-a-half years later, the promise remains unfulfilled. In contrast, the government has moved swiftly on the Metro Phase I takeover. It has agreed to take over L&T’s debt and refinance Rs 13,583.53 crore. It will also absorb equity worth Rs 1,461.47 crore. The total commitment is estimated at around Rs 15,000 crore.

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Despite financial constraints, the government has taken this decision to facilitate Metro Phase II, which will cover 122.9 km at an estimated cost of Rs 38,595 crore. However, the same urgency has not been seen in the case of the RTC merger. RTC unions had demanded that the government announce the merger on June 2, Telangana Formation Day. Their demand was not accepted.

The unions had earlier staged protests and organised a strike in April to press for their demands. The TGSRTC Unions Joint Action Committee sought the merger of TGSRTC with the government, restoration of union elections, implementation of a 30 per cent pay revision for 2021 and 2025, and other demands.

A group of Ministers led by Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka held day-long discussions with union leaders on April 25. Following the talks, the Deputy Chief Minister announced that the government had agreed to a 10 per cent fitment as part of the pay revision and had also agreed to the RTC merger.

However, Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar later stated that the merger would be taken up only after elections to the recognised unions in the corporation. He said the process would be undertaken after consultations with the elected union representatives.

Opposition charges

Meanwhile, opposition parties have alleged that Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy is interested in the 280 acres of land allotted to the Hyderabad Metro project.

BRS working president KT Rama Rao accused the Chief Minister of attempting to gain control of the 280 acres of prime real estate linked to the Metro project. He also alleged that plans were being made to divert the land to the Chief Minister’s close associates.

The RTC merger presents its own financial challenges. The integration of nearly 40,000 employees would require the alignment of RTC pay scales with those of government employees. This could increase the annual financial burden by nearly Rs 3,800 crore towards salaries, pensions and related expenses. The RTC also carries significant liabilities. These include Rs 2,685 crore in commercial loans, Rs 1,700 crore in provident fund dues, and pending retirement and gratuity benefits worth several crores.

On Thursday, hundreds of retired RTC employees staged a protest at Bus Bhavan. They demanded payment of long-pending salary arrears, leave encashment benefits and other dues that remain unpaid even after retirement.