The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) will on Sunday dispense with the services of 3,861 empanelled conductors who have not completed 10 years and 120 days of minimum service in a year as ordered by the Kerala High Court.
The order to retrench the conductors will be issued by the KSRTC on Sunday on the return of Chairman and Managing Director Tomin J. Thachankary from New Delhi. A list of empanelled conductors who have to leave the transport undertaking has been finalised and the papers are ready, official sources told The Hindu.
The management is of the view that there is no option but to issue formal orders as the High Court Bench reminded the CMD on Friday that the consequences would be drastic if its directives were not complied with. “The case is coming up in the High Court on Monday and the order to terminate the services of these conductors has to be issued,” he said.
No appeal
The KSRTC could not go on appeal against the directive in the Supreme Court as the apex court is on holiday till January 2 next year. The empanelled conductors could not approach the Supreme Court as no formal orders had been issued by the KSRTC, the sources said.
Trade unions’ stance
Mr. Thachankary briefed the development to the Chief Minister, who is in Delhi. The issue was also discussed with the standing counsel. The government is in favour of the decision of the KSRTC to buy time. The trade unions in the KSRTC also want to prevent the retrenchment of the empanelled conductors.
The Division Bench declined the plea of the KSRTC to extend by two months the deadline for implementing its directives and appoint those advised by the Kerala Public Service Commission. The KSRTC cited the inconvenience to the public and the delay in imparting training to those on the rank list.
The interim order came on a petition filed by Antony Stejo of Palakkad and others alleging that empanelled conductors were blocking the recruitment of conductors in the PSC rank list to the post of reserve conductors.
The retrenchment of the empanelled conductors will not hit the services as the KSRTC has 11,000 conductors on its rolls for the 5,000 buses in the fleet, the sources said.