Pune: As the fourth lockdown continues till May 31, the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) has lost almost Rs 100 crore in 67 days. Before lockdown, the transport utility was earning an average Rs 1.40 to 1.60 crore every day and Rs 45 to 50 crore every month.
Due to the coronavirus, the PMPML service was reduced on March 17 and after the announcement of lockdown on March 25, the service completely stopped in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad. However, the essential services were resumed from March 28. Now, the PMPML has decided to run only 60 buses from May 26 in Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) jurisdiction.
“We are facing a financial crunch. Now the buses are going to start in the PCMC area. So, we are expecting that revenue loss will be reduced,” said Anant Waghmare, PMPML Traffic Manager.
Since the lockdown, the PMPML faces heavy revenue loss. After the lockdown, the revenue decreased by Rs 40 to 50 lakh monthly.
At present PMPML has 2,000 buses in the fleet. Average 1,500 buses run every day. Due to the lockdown, PMPML is running only essential service buses. Around 120 buses are running on 50 routes and almost 1,400 buses are in the depots.
This helps PMPML generate Rs 1-2 lakh every day. To run the PMPML buses the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) gives 60 and 40 per cent of the cost respectively. In the last two months, the PMPML has not received Rs 100 crore. Due to this, the maintenance of buses, diesel, payment and others are the main issues of the department.
FACTS ABOUT PMPML
Number of employees: 10,500
Number of buses: 2,000
Number of routes: 300
Passengers onboard: 11-11.5 lakh every day
Average earning: Rs 1.4 crore to 1.6 crore
