Sarnaik promises action against 34 MSRTC depot heads for absence amid heavy Maharashtra rains

Thane, Sep 29 (PTI) Maharashtra transport minister Pratap Sarnaik on Monday directed MSRTC officials to take strict against 34 of its depot heads who were allegedly absent from their workplaces amid heavy rains over the past few days.

The state has been facing heavy rains since September 20, especially Marathwada region, leaving farms and roads submerged and throwing traffic out of gear.

Sarnaik, also the chairperson of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation, quoted a confidential report of the undertaking's security and vigilance department and said it was a very serious matter.

According to the report, heads of 34 out of 251 depots of MSRTC were not present at their duty stations even as heavy rainfall paralysed road traffic across Marathwada and Madhya Maharashtra.

"The depot head is the main component of the ST administration. Hundreds of employees work under him, night shifts are run, buses are stationed, and oil, fuel, spare parts worth lakhs, as well as large amounts of ticket sale revenue, are kept in the depot. The depot head is responsible for safeguarding and guiding all this. His absence at such a crucial time is unacceptable," he said.

"In such a serious situation, instead of being present at their headquarters and performing their duties responsibly, some depot heads were absent from duty. The concerned regional managers should immediately issue show-cause notices to such depot heads. If their explanations are not satisfactory, disciplinary action will be taken against them," Sarnaik said.

The department controllers under whose supervision these depot heads function would also face questioning, he added. PTI COR BNM