Mumbai: BEST move to let private parties use depot gets flak

A file picture of BEST staff at the Pratiksha Nagar depot

The BEST undertaking's move to allow private operators to use its bus depot and assets at Pratiksha Nagar in Sion has received sharp criticism from trade unions, who said the administration has been indulging in unfair labour practices and have threatened protests. The BEST Workers' union on Wednesday filed a complaint against the Undertaking and the BMC with the industrial court, over the alleged unfair labour practices.

"All BEST employees at the Pratiksha Nagar bus depot have been transferred last week. The ones hired to maintain a private fleet of buses have been kept there. This is nothing but privatisation and akin to a working depot being shut down without notice. We will strongly protest this," BEST Workers' Union leader Shashank Sharad Rao told mid-day.

Rao said the BEST administration has been violating all labour practices and that it was legally binding upon it to maintain a fleet of 3,337 buses, as per a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with them on June 11, 2019. "The deal was that at any point in time, the BEST must have a fleet of 3,337 self-owned buses. For every bus scrapped, the BMC is to fund a new bus," he said.

Smelling a conspiracy

"This is like handing over the bus depot to a private party and looks like a big conspiracy. We will protest to protect our bus depots and will also approach the court to raise the issue," Rao said. The BEST Workers' Union later on Wednesday filed a complaint against the BMC and the undertaking claiming unfair labour practices, at the industrial court.

BEST officials refuted the allegations of any privatisation or conspiracy, and said that it was for operational convenience. "The undertaking today has a fleet of about 1,900 buses operating on lease and there have been frequent commuter complaints about their maintenance on various aspects. The idea is to make a maintenance hub for the fleet at one place, so that complaints are promptly attended to and there is no back-log. It would be better to maintain a log of all such buses at a central place instead of scattering them everywhere," an official said.

More plans ahead

In addition to this, the depot will be used for parking of buses and other general repairs, he added. As a long-term plan, the BEST plans to procure 2,100 electric buses and has decided to have a fully electric fleet by 2027. Sources said that a similar plan was in the offing for the western suburbs at Santacruz bus depot, but this was not immediately confirmed by the authorities.