Latest news with #AmarnathSahai
Hindustan Times
05-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
UPSRTC conductor crunch stalls 2,600 buses
Nearly 20% of the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) buses—around 2,600 out of 13,000—are currently off the roads due to a shortage of conductors, according to UPSRTC spokesperson Amarnath Sahai. The corporation is now working on multiple fronts to fill the gap and support an upcoming fleet expansion. To address the shortfall, UPSRTC has reopened its 'Mritak Ashrit Scheme' after a nine-year pause. Under this scheme, 1,145 dependents of deceased employees will be appointed as conductors and 20 as drivers. Separately, a special recruitment drive targeting women received 6,150 applications against a target of 5,000 conductor positions across the state. Sahai said, 'Applications from the women's recruitment drive are being reviewed, and the final number of hires will be shared shortly.' Of the 16,298 conductors currently employed by the corporation, 3,918 are on third-party contracts. UPSRTC plans to bring in an additional 4,000 contract-based conductors soon to alleviate the staffing crunch, according to Sahai. The shortage comes at a time when the corporation is preparing to add 3,000 more buses to its fleet. 'The corporation needs to be prepared with the manpower to support the fleet expansion when it happens, as the UPSRTC is in the process of bringing 3,000 buses into the fleet—currently we do not have enough conductors even for the existing fleet,' Sahai stated. In total, UPSRTC is aiming to integrate close to 10,000 contractual conductors through a mix of in-house schemes and third-party agency support. The corporation presently employs 15,984 drivers across its operations.
Hindustan Times
29-04-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
After 9-yr hiatus, UPSRTC to fill staff shortage through Mritak Ashrit Scheme
Two days after chief minister Yogi Adityanath revived the Mritak Ashrit scheme for the UP State Road Transport Corporation (UPSTRCT), the corporation spokesperson Amarnath Sahai stated that the date for the commencement of recruitments is yet to be finalised. 'We are awaiting an official order from the state government, after which the recruitment process will begin.' He further stated that these beneficiaries, dependents of deceased UPSRTC employees who were the sole earners in their families, will be employed as drivers and conductors in the state bus fleet. 'As per the information available, around 15 to 20 of the 1165 beneficiaries have not completed high school and will therefore only be eligible for driver positions. The rest will be considered for conductor roles, subject to final verification of their documents,' he added. The scheme had remained stalled for the past nine years, reportedly because it can only be implemented when the corporation is operating at a profit. In recent years, the corporation was incurring losses, as shared by former spokesperson Ajit Singh during the two continuous protests at the UPSRTC Headquarters in Lucknow in June last year. However, with the corporation returning to profitability, there was renewed expectation this year for the revival of the scheme. Now, nine years later, the shortage of personnel, more specifically the drivers and conductors for the state bus fleet, will be fulfilled by the beneficiaries of the Mritak Ashrit scheme. Now, the number of beneficiaries is 1165, as kins lose eligibility for the scheme after five years of the employees' passing.
