Delhi Transport Corporation to formalise plan to improve non-fare revenue

DTC suffered losses of more than ₹60,000 crore between 2015 and 2022, according to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General

Delhi transport minister Pankaj Singh on Saturday said that the department is taking a slew of measures to improve the financial health of the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), which suffered losses of more than ₹60,000 crore between 2015 and 2022 according to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).

DTC has been asked to explore bus depot spaces where commercial development or advertisements can be feasible. (HT Archive)

Singh told HT that the government is making efforts to increase DTC’s non-fare revenue, an issue highlighted by CAG in its report.

“We have identified 300 bus queue shelters where advertisement space can be given. These are visible bus stops mostly at prime locations across parts of central and south Delhi. We are working out the details so that there is recurrent revenue and maintenance of these bus stops,” said Singh.

He added that DTC has been asked to explore bus depot spaces where commercial development or advertisements can be feasible. Officials added that plans were also made to use depots for commercial development such as shops, retail space and offices a few years ago, but these were never formalised.

“DTC has some very prime real estate in ITO, Vasant Vihar, and Connaught Place, among other places, that can be used in a better manner. We are exploring if these can all be developed as multilevel bus depots that have space for electric buses and can also have shops and offices. We are also exploring if any depots can have full face ads,” Singh told HT.

One of DTC’s major expenses is electricity charges, which will increase further as the entire bus fleet is gradually shifting to electric. DTC is now working on installing solar panels at bus depots to reduce electricity bills by 50-60%, officials said.

“According to our initial estimates, we may be able to halve our electricity bills if we can install solar panels. However, we are still working out the details and the department will formalise a plan soon,” said Singh.

During a discussion in the assembly on DTC’s performance, chief minister Rekha Gupta said that the three ISBTs at Sarai Kale Khan, Anand Vihar and Kashmere Gate will be redeveloped.

The CAG report on DTC’s performance said that since the latter was incurring losses continuously, augmenting revenue from sources other than operations assumes considerable importance. However, the audit observed various instances where DTC “lost opportunity to earn additional revenue” through advertisements, commercial use of space at depots, and other ways.

The report said, “Tenders for advertising on unipoles were not finalised for various reasons. Despite the availability of buses for Bus Body Wraps (BBW), DTC did not execute the contracts and lost the opportunity to earn revenue of ₹ 40.57 crore from 2015 to 2022.” BBW is a form of advertising in which a bus is partially or completely covered with branded graphics and advertisements.

The report also said that DTC did not finalise the proposal for installing LED screens in buses and also could not augment revenue through commercial use of depots.

CAG suggested that DTC should maximise its potential to generate revenue through unipoles, BBW contracts and installation of LED in buses by adopting a proactive approach. CAG has also recommended appointing an expert or consultant to explore new avenues for advertising revenue and commercial use of land.