Kerala bus strike ends after minister assures wet lease arrangement with KSRTC

Thiruvananthapuram: The Bus Operators Federation has called off its ongoing hunger strike following discussions with Transport Minister C.P. John, who assured private bus owners that the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) would hire private buses on a wet lease basis. Under this arrangement, bus owners will provide the vehicles and drivers, while KSRTC will provide the conductors.

What is wet lease?

A wet lease is a leasing arrangement in which the owner (lessor) provides an asset along with the personnel and operational support required to run it.

In aviation, this typically involves providing an aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance to another airline.

In public bus transport, the arrangement follows a similar model. The private bus operator (lessor) provides the bus and drivers, while the transport corporation (lessee), such as KSRTC, provides conductors and manages passenger services.

The minister also announced that the recommendations of the Padmakumar Commission on extending the service life of buses would be implemented through appropriate legal provisions.

The meeting also reached an agreement to resolve existing technical hurdles in the legal transfer of a bus operator's permit and service to another person.

John further announced that a permanent committee comprising representatives of private bus operators' organisations would be constituted to discuss their concerns and maintain regular communication with the government.

However, the discussions did not result in a final decision on increasing student concession rates or bus fares. The minister assured the operators that the issues would be addressed through further discussions.