Dutta: Sought after

Guwahati, Sept. 30: The State Transport Workers Association threatened to launch an agitation against the government’s decision to appoint a legislator as chairman of the Assam State Transport Corporation (ASTC) by replacing transport minister Anjan Dutta.

Addressing a news conference here today, general secretary of the association, Khurshid Alam, said though they do not want to interfere with government policies, all the employees want Dutta to continue as ASTC chairman.

“We doubt if Dutta’s successor will be able to keep up the progress made by the corporation in the past two years,” Alam said.

The association called a chakka bandh on October 13 and threatened to go to court if all other action failed. The government named Bhimananda Tanti as the new chairman of the corporation.

Alam said the association is peeved over the fact that even Dutta, whom they had supported in his policies and programmes, did not take them into confidence.

He said Dutta’s decision not to inform them might have been driven by political compulsions. The association demanded that Dutta hold talks with them.

The association, in a letter to chief minister Tarun Gogoi, said all the revival schemes of the ASTC would be disturbed if another MLA was appointed chairman of the corporation.

The letter praised Dutta’s untiring efforts to improve the image of the corporation by introducing various schemes. The employees of the corporation have been getting salaries regularly and work culture has also improved, it added.

The association said it is quite normal for expenses to go up once a new chairman takes over. The corporation shells out Rs 50,000 every month for this post.

The earnings of the ASTC is Rs 11.84 per km, which is higher than the average of several other state transport corporations. The corporation is procuring 36 new buses this year. A substantial sum of provident fund dues has also been paid to the employees.