Allege checkups conducted improperly and were just a formality
Two months after the Santosh Mane case rocked the city, wherein Mane, a State Transport (ST) bus driver went berserk behind the wheel in Swargate area, killing nine people and injuring 27 others, the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) is done compiling a detailed medical report on ST drivers across the state.
However, the Maharashtra State Transport Workers’ Federation, a labour union, is unhappy with the report and has slammed it, claiming that medical checkups were conducted in an improper manner. The union has also claimed that checkups lacked a psychological test for the drivers.
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“Medical checkups have been conducted in an improper manner. They were just a formality. Detailed checkups, including a psychological test for the drivers were expected. I don’t think this report will help the committee in understanding issues faced by ST workers. Three months rest has been suggested for drivers with critical health. Alternative work provision should be made for drivers with such conditions. More than the report, we are interested in solutions and provisions for ST workers,” said Hanumant Tate, general secretary, Maharashtra State Transport Workers’ Federation.
The detailed medical report will be submitted to the Technical Committee tomorrow. The committee has been formed to study and analyze problems faced by the state transport employees. Once through with the report, the committee is expected to table a few suggestions for improving ST driver’ efficacy.
“We have conducted medical checkups for 34,500 ST drivers (99 per cent of total drivers) in the state. Tests, including blood, sugar and blood pressure, have been conducted step-by-step and city wise. Out of 34,500 drivers, 25 are required to undergo a second round of tests. It is next to impossible to subject each and every driver to a psychological test because it will be time consuming,” said an MSRTC spokesperson, requesting anonymity.
A total of 1,960 drivers from the city took the medical tests, out of which 60 were detected as critical. u00a0
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