No load-shedding in island city: New BEST chief

The island city will not face any load-shedding in the near future. That’s the assurance made by Om Prakash Gupta, the new general manager at Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST).

The island city will not face any load-shedding in the near future.

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That’s the assurance made by Om Prakash Gupta, the new general manager at Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST).

Gupta, who took over on Friday, said this was because BEST has its arithmetic right and is in a position to maintain a steady supply and demand balance.

About the proposed hike in CNG prices, Gupta said: “The hike details have not been officially announced. Once that is done, we will examine the situation according to our figures for expenditure and revenue, and if needed, place a proposal before the committee and get it approved,” he added.

Gupta, who started out as deputy collector at Sindhudurg district in 1993, was also vice-chairman and managing director of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation, which runs a fleet of more than 15,000 buses, the country’s second largest. BEST’s fleet size is 4,500 buses.

Gupta, a 1992-batch IAS officer, who also has an MTech from IIT-Delhi, faced his first BEST committee meeting, comprising politicians from the Shiv Sena, BJP and Congress, in BEST Bhavan at Colaba.

“Gupta will face great challenges, from settling workers’ wage agreements to filling vacant posts. He will also have to streamline the working of the transport and electricity undertaking,” committee member Sunil Ganacharya said, welcoming Gupta.