Unfit drivers in government buses put lives at risk

CHENNAI: The state transport corporation is putting the lives of passengers at risk by forcibly deploying physically ‘unfit’ drivers. Drivers complained that they were being denied light duty jobs, but official data revealed that such jobs were provided mostly to workers from unions affiliated to the ruling party.
K Murali, who had been an MTC driver for more than 20 years, damaged his spinal cord, following which the medical board at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital certified that he was physically unfit to drive government buses. He was then posted as a watchman at the Ayanavaram depot. Six months later, the MTC asked him to start driving again. Despite informing authorities of his medical condition, he was asked to join. He later approached a court which directed the MTC to send him to the medical board for a physical examination.
The MTC, in its letter to the board, said the corporation was a labour-oriented workplace and there was nothing called light-duty job. If the board declared more people unfit, MTC would face losses and commuters would suffer, the letter said. “The medical board after reading the letter mechanically declared me fit without doing a basic examination,” Murali told TOI.
Another MTC employee, who was left paralysed in the left leg and hand after an accident, was asked to return to work. He had been absent for more than five months. MTC managing director Anbu Abraham refused to comment despite repeated calls.
“The authorities concerned do not understand the risk involved in deploying such drivers—who are physically fit only on papers... By this, They are risking the lives of many,” SVS-AAP transport union member K Anbalagan said.
Labour laws and several court judgments have reiterated that no government employee can be terminated from service because of illness or disability caused during work and that they should be given light duty.
Though there are plenty of light-duty jobs at cash counters, technical section and maintenance and safety departments, official records show that these jobs are doled out to employees from the workers’ unions affiliated to the ruling party. According to official data sourced through an RTI application, of the 686 light-duty jobs available at TNSTC in Villpuram, 645 were given to Anna Transport Workers Union affiliated to the AIADMK.
In an earlier report, TOI had revealed how more than 180 physically fit ruling party workers were allotted positions like medical caretakers, security guards, computer assistants and traffic regulators in various government bus depots in and around Madurai.
This has, in turn, reduced the overall operation of government buses and resulted in losses worth Rs 9 crore a year, said Madurai’ government transport workers’ union member V Pitchai, who sourced the information through an RTI application.
Besides the losses, TNSTC, Madurai, spends nearly Rs 7.2 crore every month towards salary. This includes the Rs 2 lakh given to employees for laundering their uniforms every year. A few other MTC officials, however, said light duties were given to employees based on vacancies at that point of time.