Fadnavis seizes control of MSRTC land deals from Shinde’s minister

Following MSRTC’s recent plans to monetise its bus depots at prime locations across the state, an order was issued by the state transport department on Thursday stipulating that separate tenders be issued for the plots, each of which will require the chief minister’s approval before the projects can proceed

MUMBAI: In yet another flashpoint between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena – key partners in the ruling Mahayuti – chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has taken control of the land deals of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC), which falls under the state transport department headed by Sena minister Pratap Sarnaik.

Fadnavis seizes control of MSRTC land deals from Shinde’s minister

Following MSRTC’s recent plans to monetise its bus depots at prime locations across the state, an order was issued by the state transport department on Thursday stipulating that separate tenders be issued for the plots, each of which will require the chief minister’s approval before the projects can proceed. Fadnavis had stayed MSRTC’s procurement contract for 1,310 buses last year, overturning a decision made under the supervision of Eknath Shinde—deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena chief—during his tenure as chief minister.

MSRTC plans to develop nearly 3,500 acres of land spread across 850 locations under the PPP model. A large portion of these properties is located in central and strategically important areas in Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

“MSRTC may develop projects under the PPP model on all types of land, including land owned by the corporation, land acquired under the land acquisition act, government land transferred to it, land transferred from the former road transport department, land held under lease agreements and land received through gift deeds,” stated a government resolution (GR) issued on Thursday. “The final approval for each individual tender will continue to be mandatory at the level of the chief minister.”

Following the CM’s move, the government has formed a high-level committee led by the transport minister to guide the MSRTC board. Under the committee’s direction, the board is authorized to advance the tender process, execute concession agreements, transfer assets and oversee project implementation and other key matters.

Additionally, in an effort to steer itself out of the red, MSRTC has decided to increase the period for which it leases its bus stands under the PPP model from 60 to 98 years, which has been approved by the state government thus creating a stable revenue stream.

MSRTC has been the backbone of intra-state road transport, offering affordable rates for the last 70 years. But the concessions it offers have come at a huge cost. The corporation’s accumulated losses mounted to nearly ₹11,000 crore. In order to improve its revenue, MSRTC rolled out the PPP model to lease its 598 bus stands and 251 bus depots across the state.

When HT asked Sarnaik for his view on the development, he said the decision would make the process transparent.

“We are very happy with the decision as it makes the entire procedure crystal clear as there will be a separate tender for each land, which will be approved by the head of the government,” said Sarnaik.

The decision comes over a month after Fadnavis overruled Sarnaik’s aggressive push to suspend licences of auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers, who could not speak Marathi, for three months. The CM instead granted them a year to learn the language and promised no action would be taken against them in that duration. The move was politically significant as a large chunk of auto and taxi drivers are north Indian migrants, who have been the BJP’s vote bank for the last 12 years.