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| Monday, 11 August 2003 |
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by Rajmi Manatunga The Transport Ministry has notified the heads of all 13 cluster bus companies to inform it of any buses that have been abandoned owing to minor deficiencies. Secretary to the Ministry, Cecil Amarasinghe has sent the notification to Chairmen of the companies following the Government's decision to repair such buses using Rs. 100 million from Treasury funds. Over 2,000 buses attached to the Central Transport Board (CTB) have been abandoned during the past few years due to the shortage of spare parts and other equipment. A CTB official told the Daily News that they were compelled to remove these buses from daily operation since the authorities did not have sufficient funds to buy the equipment required for repairs. Replacing the parts of unroadworthy buses with those of other buses has also contributed to the large number of abandoned vehicles. The gradual deduction of state-owned buses came at a time where the CTB is running at a monthly loss of Rs. 25 million. Authorities said that most of the Government funds received (around Rs. 120 million per month) were spent on the payment of salaries, allowances of the 40,000 employees. Commenting on the recent spate of road accidents involving CTB buses, the official attributed the mishaps to the lack of employees at depots for the daily examination of buses before they are put on the road. |
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