Firoz.T.Totanawala The Bangalore Metro Reporter KSTDC FINALLY WAKES UP! BIAL AIRPORT TAXI SERVICES FRAUD, CHIKKAMATH AND OTHERS SUSPENDED….

By Firoz.T.Totanawala

The Bangalore Metro Reporter

KSTDC FINALLY WAKES UP!  

BIAL AIRPORT TAXI SERVICES FRAUD, CHIKKAMATH AND OTHERS SUSPENDED….

The KSTDC which is operating Airport Taxi services has now started taking some action against few culprits who have involved in notorious scams. The KSTDC Taxi Service Counter was actually run by Chikkamath, the ATO and the fraudsters who styled as the office bearers of the Bangalore Airport KSTDC Taxi Drivers Welfare Association, particularly its Secretary R.Neelakantappa. They have committed fraud by manipulating the remittances to the KSTDC. In one case, the MD has now suspended the Assistant Manager Chikkamath and two others. At least now, the law is taking its course in KSTDC.... 

We have carried several exposures on the frauds committed in the KSTDC’s Airport Taxi Services monopolised by a self styled office bearers of Bangalore Airport KSTDC Taxi Drivers Welfare Association, a bogus association. Its General Secretary R.Neelakantappa, an outsourced employee of the Corporation, had held both the KSTDC’s Airport Counter and the Taxi drivers to ransom. Whatever he said was law and the ATO Chikkamath was like his orderly. The Taxi drivers who purchased the stipulated luxury cars and attached it to the KSTDC by paying heavy deposit were forced by Neelakantappa and gang to become members of the Association by paying an unimaginable fee of Rs.16500/-. More than anything, the drivers had to work at the mercy and discretion of Neelakantappa and gang which included Chikkamath. 

 The drivers were harassed, victimised and tortured by the Neelakantappa gang. They were fined heavily even for small mistakes. Sometimes, they were denied access cards for days on end for any lapses. The Neelakantappa gang had established its monopoly over the KSTDC Taxi Services. 

Only after the Neelakantappa gangs cleared, the KSTDC used to attach the vehicle for its services. The Call Centre too was under the octopus like grip of Neelakantappa gang. 

 It is another matter that KSTDC is earning crores every year from the Taxi services. The Taxi drivers who attach their vehicles (in fact, the KSTDC has no vehicle on its own), have to pay parking charges of Rs.9000/- per month. They also have to shell out Rs.2000/- as call centre charges. The KSTDC pays about Rs.80/- per day per vehicle to the BIAL as licence for parking and Taxi services and there are about 600 Taxies operating under the banner of KSTDC. Each driver has to pay a security deposit of Rs.30,0000/- to the KSTDC, out of which the Corporation pays Rs.15000/- deposit to the BIAL. The parking fee paid by the Taxi-drivers is almost a lakh per vehicle, while the corporation pays about Rs.30000/- to the BIAL. From this only, one can imagine the KSTDC’s Airport Taxi business. 

 In spite of getting big profits, the KSTDC has not taken even a semblance of Welfare measures to the Taxi drivers. And Neelakantappa gang which styled itself as the Association formed for Taxi Drivers Welfare had literally looted them. No taxi driver could run the Taxi and earn his livelihood by antagonising this gang. Interestingly, the KSTDC has recognised this bogus Association against all known parameters of law. 

 It is another matter that the KSTDC was inflicted heavy loss by Chikkamath and Neelakantappa gang through defalcation and manipulation of collection of fines etc. from the Taxi drivers. We had exposed instances of Chikkamth, Neelakantappa gang collecting heavy fines from Taxi drivers and remitting nominal amount to the KSTDC. What more, all such receipts were generated by the computers! Allegedly, in spite of knowing about the fraud, the MD kept quiet, because Chikkamath is a powerful official with high contacts. The Manager and Asst. Manager in charge of Finance had also submitted a note to the MD and their findings are very serious. They have submitted that Chikkamath and others have not maintained cash books, both written and computerised from 11.12.2008 to 31.5.2012! It is this that made the fraud possible and difficult to detect. Interestingly, the note also found that duplicate receipts have not been maintained. More than anything else, the note also states that the computerised vouchers of fine collections from Taxi drivers have been purposely destroyed so that their fraud could not be detected. Had the MD acted immediately after our exposure, the inspection team would have hit dirt and detected fraud of lakhs of rupees. 

 Whatsoever, the MD has now suspended Chikkamath and two other employees. At least that is a good beginning. That is all.