The stand off between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on inter-State services operated by the road transport corporations of the two States ended on Monday afternoon following an amicable agreement between them. The services which were suspended between the two States in the wake of imposition of lockdown on March 23 were straight away restored at 5p.m with the first bus taking off to Kurnool from Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station in Hyderabad and a bus departing for Hyderabad from Vijayawada around sametime.
As per the agreement signed by the vice-chairmen and managing directors of the two corporations -- Sunil Sharma (Telangana) and M.T. Krishna Babu (Andhra Pradesh) -- Telangana outfit will run 1,61,258 kms daily in Andhra Pradesh with 820 services and AP will run 259 kms less with 638 services. But, the roll out will be gradual and demand driven.
The agreement in the presence of Transport Minister of Telangana P. Ajay Kumar sealed the number of services to be run by either States on specified routes. It was the first agreement post-bifurcation.
Though the Centre had relaxed lockdown norms to permit inter-State movement of buses months ago, they could not be run between Telangana and AP as the former State insisted on parity in services. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao was firm that both States should operate equal kilometres and services. The parameter of kms was achieved on Monday but Telangana demanded more services for an equal length which was conceded.
AP ran 1,009 services in Telangana prior to lockdown but it will now operate only 638 services which was 371 less. Telangana operated 750 services earlier but demanded 850 now.
Ministers to meet
Speaking to reporters later, Mr. Krishna Babu said the bus services between the two States till bifurcation were as per arrangement in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh. Now, an agreement on services was reached at the corporation level but Transport Ministers of two States will meet again to settle road tax payment issues.
He expressed apprehensions that operating one lakh kms on a daily basis for any road transport corporation might be a tall order in present COVID conditions.
The arrangement might have to be reworked if the target was not achieved.
Mr. Ajay Kumar said the agreement was necessitated because the services between Telangana and AP were higher than with other neighbouring States. He added that TSRTC suffered a loss of over ₹2,000 crore in lockdown.
The TSRTC used to get a daily revenue of ₹13 crore before the lockdown, but currently the Corporation is earning ₹7 crore per day.
Mr. Babu said the loss to APSRTC was over ₹2,400 crore during lockdown and currently the corporation is running only 60 % bus services.