Kochi: The government on Wednesday shunted out Tomin J. Thachankary from the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) in the wake of stiff opposition from trade unions including the pro-government CITU.
M. P. Dinesh, the Kochi city police commissioner, is the new chairman and managing director, the fourth since the Left Democratic Front (LDF) came to power in 2016.
M. G. Rajamanickam replaced late Antony Chacko in October 2016 but had to vacate the post to DGP A. Hemachandran a year later.
The removal of Mr Thachankary comes at a time when his initiatives to effect a turnaround started deriving results though at the expense of inviting the wrath of unionists.
Upon taking charge in April 2018, he started implementing recommendations of Sushil Khanna report, following the path of Mr Rajamanickam.
Though he enjoyed the backing of the state government and transport minister A. K. Saseendran in his radical measures, from dividing the corporation into three zones for managing operations to stoppage of double duty system and the introduction of driver-cum- conductor post, the LDF coalition was reportedly not happy on the way he handled the mass termination of empanelled conductors.
Two CPM representatives on its board of directors had given a letter to the state government recommending his removal to “defuse” opposition over the mass termination.
Mr Thachankary was holding the additional charge of KSRTC MD besides that as ADGP, State Crime Records Bureau. The KSRTC had managed to disburse salary this month from own funds without government aid or bank loans for the first time in 25 years.
