After a DTC bus Monday killed two after hitting a scooty, a bike and a hand-rikshaw, before ploughing into pedestrians, on the Najafgarh-Nangloi Road, the DTC Karmachari Ekta Union (DTCKEU) came down heavily on the corporation, claiming that frequent and fatal accidents were a result of the privatisation of operations, wherein contractors were hiring incompetent and rash drivers, alluring them with incentives to push the limits.
In a detailed statement shared with The Statesman and news agency United News of India (UNI), the DTC drivers’ association announced its intentions to move the court against the practice in the larger interest of the people of Delhi.
“The DTC Karmachari Ekta Union is preparing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on this issue in the Delhi High Court, and will soon file it to protect the citizens of Delhi. It is very important to stop such practices. All of us—our children, our families, and every citizen—use these roads, and every day some household is losing a loved one,” the association said in its statement.
In order to put all their buses on the roads, private contractors often recruit tractor drivers and those operating “rural service vehicles”.
“As long as these buses in Delhi are driven by people hired by private contractors, someone or the other in Delhi will keep losing their loved ones every day. These private drivers are hired by contractors without proper qualifications. Contractors put pressure on them to drive the buses for as many kilometres as possible and lure them with incentives. They often jump red lights and skip bus stops…” the DTC drivers’ association said.
The association underlined the sense of responsibility and accountability that informs the conduct and service conditions of regular government-employed DTC drivers, highlighting the contrast with private hires.
“On the other hand, a government-employed driver is responsible. He worries about his promotion—he knows that if he drives properly, he will get promoted and his salary will increase. Therefore, he drives responsibly, keeps the bus in its lane, does not overtake recklessly, and does not skip stops. He knows that even one complaint can halt his promotion.”
The drivers’ body likened the traffic behaviour of private bus drivers to “how battery rickshaws operate in Delhi—they stop anywhere they want, park anywhere on the road, and try to make as many trips as possible to earn more money. The same logic applies to these private contractor drivers: the more trips they make, the more money they earn.”
The DTC Karmachari Ekta Union, the statement said, has “been consistently opposing these private contractor drivers.”
“We have repeatedly appealed to every government that these buses should instead be driven by government-employed drivers. These drivers should receive proper training, and their documents should be verified—such as their driving licence, 10th-pass certificate, badge verification, police verification, and confirmation that their heavy vehicle licence is at least three years old—before giving them the job.”