RSRTC moves towards profitability after adding 1,500 buses, new services | Jaipur News

Jaipur: Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation (RSRTC) has taken multiple steps over the past year to move from a loss-making public sector undertaking towards profitability, officials said Saturday.Officials cited the induction of 1,500 new buses, rollout of services such as Gramin Sewa, and a focus on ensuring profit on every kilometre of operations. They said about 60 bus stands across Rajasthan were being renovated under Budget funds to improve cleanliness, safety, and passenger amenities.

The corporation has also started an on-board food-serving facility in its premium services on selected routes and is in the process of introducing LED screens for passenger entertainment.“For the first time in many years, passengers in Rajasthan are seeing choice, comfort, and class—without compromising affordability. Even as these improvements roll out, RSRTC has moved to the next frontier: the tender process for electric buses is underway, which will enable a modern future fleet,” said Shubhra Singh, chairperson of RSRTC.Officials said introducing Gramin Sewa was a key innovation, where, rather than subsidising inefficiencies, RSRTC experimented with incentivising performance and operational discipline to form a win-win collaboration with service providers.“The scheme, which was expected to cost Rs 21 per km to the exchequer, was turned around on its head and is now generating revenue of Rs 7 per km. Rural connectivity—too long dependent on irregular private operators—now has a dependable public option with a sustainable financial logic behind it. The new model is gaining traction and will be scaled up in coming months,” added Singh.Officials said that with stringent measures to curb revenue leakages, earnings per kilometre increased from Rs 30/km in the pre-Covid era to Rs 43/km last year.“For the first time in years, salaries were paid on time, month after month, and the impact was immediate, as trade unions that were sharply critical earlier publicly acknowledged the improvement,” said the chairperson.