Item No. S-5 Vinod Kumar Vs. HRTC & another a/w connected matters. Execution Petition No.1332/2024 a/w Execution Petition (T) No.179/2023, COPCs No.232 to 234/2024, Execution Petitions (T) No.111, 115, 116, 119 to 121, 124 to 127, 136, 137, 142, 145, 150 to 157, 171, 228, 306 to 308, 325, 327, 329, 330, 332 to 336, 337 to 346/2024, Execution Petitions No.459 to 462, 477, 533 to 536, 542, 1321 to 1331, 1333 to 1336/2024, Execution Petitions (T) No.18, 23, 24, 37, 63, 172/2025, Execution Petitions No.120 to 124, 127, 173, 255, 698/2025 and Execution Petition No.32 of 2025. 01.01.2026. Present: Mr. Azmat Hayat Khan, Mr. Rohit Guleria, Mr. Balwant Singh Thakur, Mr. Vikas Rajput, Mr. Sat Prakash and Mr. Shyama Prasad Chatterji, Advocates, for the petitioners, in the respective petitions. Mr. Sunil Mohan Goel, Senior Advocate with Mr. Raman Jamalta and Mr. Dheeraj Kumar Vashisht, Advocates, for the respondent-HRTC, in the respective petitions. Mr. Anup Rattan, Advocate General with Mr. Rakesh Dhaulta, Additional Advocate General, for the respondents/State. The affidavit filed by the Chief Secretary to the Government of Himachal Pradesh, dated 12.12.2025, would go on to show that the monthly average operational income of the Corporation is around Rs.70 crores against the expenditure of Rs.145 crores, which has led to the liability of Rs.1396 crores and a large part of the same, amounting to Rs. 1130.24 crores, is for the dues in respect of the employees and retirees of the Corporation. The State Government is providing an average monthly support of Rs.60.00 crores to the Corporation and the Corporation is providing free/concessional travelling facilities to 28 categories of citizens. The Corporation is stated to be running around 1750 services which do not even cover the operational cost, i.e. the cost of diesel and maintenance. The details as such of the financial support to the Corporation by the Government given since 2015-16 onwards are as under:- Sr. No. Year Government Support (In Crores) 1. 2015-16 375 2. 2016-17 320 3. 2017-18 355 4. 2018-19 364 5. 2019-20 389 6. 2020-21 591 7. 2021-22 662 8. 2022-23 717 9. 2023-24 787 10. 2024-25 738 2. It has further been mentioned that the Corporation is generally left with many uneconomical routes as the private operators prefer to operate only on profit making routes. Due to the revision of the 6th Pay Commission, the expenditure on salary of the employees and pension of the retirees, has almost increased upto 126% and the cost of the diesel has also increased by 100%. These two elements have played a vital role in deteriorating the financial health of the Corporation. The improvement in the total earning of the Corporation after Covid-10 pandemic has also been highlighted, which reads as under:- Sr. No. Year Total Earning 1. 2017-18 761.25 2. 2018-19 811.71 3. 2019-20 816.93 4. 2020-21 273.36 5. 2021-22 548.48 6. 2022-23 854.86 7. 2023-24 816.87 8. 2024-25 876.37 3. There is also a mention regarding switching over to Electric buses, which will reduce the operational cost by Rs.20/- per kilometer as the diesel cost per kilometer is around Rs.27/- per kilometer. The Corporation has placed a Letter of Award for purchase of 297 electric buses with 12 year maintenance contract and these buses will be likely to be added in the fleet of the Corporation during the financial year 2025-26. The funds for purchase of these electric buses have been wholly provided by the Government. The Corporation has proposed to surrender low-performing routes and the buses operating on these routes. Over the course of a year, a total of 612 buses have been surrendered in three phases- in the first phase 107 buses, in the second phase 55 buses and in the third phase 450 buses, primarily operating on Low Earning Per Kilometer (EPKM) routes and causing sustained financial losses. 4. The long route buses are stated to have been discontinued on account of persistently low Earning Per Kilometer (EPKM) and sub-optimal occupancy is rendering the Corporation to financial losses. A comprehensive review of intra-state services has led to the closure of 88 routes. 5. The cashless mode of payment for the passenger has been implemented with a view to plug in the pilferage of revenue. Overtime Allowance has been reduced by 50% by monitoring at Head Office level and giving targets to each unit and Night Out Allowance has been reduced by 10%. The minimum fare from Rs.5/- upto 2 kilometers to Rs. 10/- upto 4 kilometers has been increased and the passenger fare has also been increased by the Government vide Notification dated 8th May, 2025 to increase the revenue. Further RFID based Him Bus card has been introduced which would be mandatory for the passengers availing the concessional/free travel in the HRTC buses. 6. It has been further mentioned that there are as many as 659 employees who are eligible for arrears and their pay fixation has been completed. An amount of Rs. 15.00 lacs per employee is to be paid and, therefore, the tentative liability on this account shall be Rs.100.00 crores. The cut-off date for disbursement of the arrears to the said employees has been fixed as 31.03.2028, subject to financial assistance from the State Government. The proposed monthly payment plan for defraying the complete liability on account of the arrears of the aforesaid employees has also been reproduced in the affidavit. A sum of Rs.15.00 crores is stated to have been disbursed on this account which has covered 509 employees out of 659, who have received the first instalment of the arrears. 7. In view of the above, it would be clear that the Corporation is facing an extreme financial stress and necessary steps are required to be taken to find out as to why long routes as such have become non-viable, which in fact, should be the bread and butter of the Corporation. Let the State take necessary steps to ensure that the long routes as such become commercially viable by taking effective steps to monitor and find out as to why private operators are in a better position to provide the same set of facilities at lower costs and whether adequate checking is being done of the private buses; whether the private buses running on the said uneconomical long routes and whether there is any laxity as such on the checking of the private operators in the State. The Corporation shall also furnish a list of 28 categories of citizens who are provided free/concessional travel facility, which necessarily will have to be curtailed for the survival of the Corporation. 9. Needless to say, if a decision is to be taken, it is for the Corporation/State to take a hard call rather than giving freebies to the general public. The pro-active steps for the disbursal of the arrears to the employees in phases, as has been done, shall be continued by the Corporation. List on 30.03.2026. (G.S. Sandhawalia) Chief Justice. (Jiya Lal Bhardwaj) Judge January 01, 2026 (hemlata)