Firoz.T.Totanawala The Bangalore Metro Reporter THE OPEN LIE! KSTDC AIRPORT TAXI SERVICES, KSTDC ENTERS INTO CALL CENTRE AGREEMENT, BUT, GIVES FALSE RTI INFORMATION.

By Firoz.T.Totanawala

The Bangalore Metro Reporter

THE OPEN LIE!  

KSTDC AIRPORT TAXI SERVICES,  

KSTDC ENTERS INTO CALL CENTRE AGREEMENT, BUT, GIVES FALSE RTI INFORMATION.

The Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation is running Airport Taxi Services in the Bangalore International Airport. It is making crores in this business without investing a single pie. The 600 plus Taxi owners are operating under the KSTDC banner. They have to pay Rs. 30,000/- as security deposit, Rs. 9000 per month as parking fees and Rs. 2000/- per month to call centre charge to the KSTDC. The KSTDC in turn pays about Rs. 15,000 per vehicle to the BIAL per year as parking charges. All these years, the KSTDC Taxi Services were controlled and monopolised by an employee Neelakantappa who had floated a bogus Association of Taxi Drivers with the convenience of the top officials in KSTDC. Now, the KSTDC has ‘given’ the call centre contract to Neelakantappa Association which is partnering with a private individual. And KSTDC in the RTI reply says that it has no agreement with the Association... 

 In our earlier exposures, we had dealt with the KSTDC Airport Taxi Drivers Welfare Association, a bogus association, harassing, victimising and torturing the Taxi drivers with the active connivance of the KSTDC top brass. One ATO Chickmath had become a member of the Neelakantappa gang in their looting games. The scam was widely reported yet; the KSTDC top brass have cared two hoots for the same and are protecting the gang for obvious reasons.

Whatsoever, the KSTDC has indulged in reeling out mischievous facts (lies) to defend their actions. As far as call centre issue is concerned, the KSTDC top brass have crossed all limits of decency in administration by reeling out utter lies, without bothering about the consequences of taking such liberties with truth. 

The call centre business is a money spinner to few KSTDC officials and Neelakantappa gang. It is another matter that the KSTDC had run the call centre as a mere formality because the Taxi Services agreement with BIAL stipulated an establishment of a call centre. The Taxi drivers were forced to shell out Rs.2000 per month (that is Rs.65 per day, per vehicle) as call centre charges. A simple arithmetic puts the collection of call centre charges at Rs.10 lakhs a month, now 12 lakhs a month. 

On the contrary, the call centre never provided pick up or drop to the majority of the Taxi drivers. It served only the vehicles owned by Neelakantappa gang. In fact, Neelakantappa was the defacto boss of the call centre. The Taxi drivers resented this attitude, but they could do little. Even if they approach the call centre for trips, their requests were forwarded to Neelakantappa gang and only after their clearance, the Taxi drivers would get the trips and that too once or twice in a month. 

Last year, the Neelakantappa gang had decided to take over the call centre. They had clinched a deal with the then MD. The gang wanted to emulate the example of KSTDC by making big money without investing a single rupee. They had an understanding with Vikas global company to run the call centre and share the revenue with them. Later they convinced the MD of the profitability of the arrangement who gave a go ahead to a tripartite agreement for running the call centre. 

In January this year, a tripartite agreement was executed between the KSTDC, Bangalore Airport KSTDC Taxi Drivers Welfare Association and the Vikas Global solutions for running the call centre. This implies that the bogus association is a partner with the Vikas Solutions. As per the agreement executed on 06-01-2012, the call centre would be run by Vikas Globals in partnership with Neelakantappa association; the association has to collect the call centre charges at Rs 65/- per day per vehicle for the first six months. The charges would be increased to Rs 100/- per day per vehicle after six months. Interestingly, out of the Rs 100/- collected, the association will have to pay Rs 60/- to the KSTDC and Rs 40/- to the Vikas Global! This implies that it is the association which has to collect the call centre charges from the driver and pay the KSTDC and the Vikas Global. This further means that at Rs. 100/- per day that is Rs 3000/- per month, the total of call centre collection charges will be 18 lakhs and KSTDC will get 10.80 lakhs and the Vikas 7.20 lakhs per month. 

Considering the looting nature of Neelakantappa gang, one can expect the gang managing 50% of the amount paid to Vikas Globals. It is the Neelakantappa gang which has chosen Vikas and not the KSTDC after following the Transparency Act. It is just that Neelakantappa gang zeroed on Vikas Globals and made a partnership offer of sharing 50:50. For the first six months that is from 06-01-2012, the entire collections have gone to the Vikas (also Neelakantappa gang). The collections during the first six months were 72 lakhs at 12 lakhs per month! 

What more, not a single pie was credited to the association by the gang. Allegedly, the share of the gang was more than 60 percent in the first six months. It can be seen from the agreement that Vikas globals will be entitled to Rs 40/- per day per vehicle as its share, with effect from 01-06-2012. Arguably, the company will be content with Rs 20/-, as it has to share other Rs 20 with the Neelakantappa gang. So, one can very well put the collection of the gang in the first six months at 17.55 lakhs. It is another matter that the gang used to collect the call centre charges through the receipts of their bogus association. 

And now for the machinations of the KSTDC. The agreement was signed by the MD Sundar Naik on behalf of KSTDC, K.Prabhakara Reddy, the President of the bogus association, on behalf of the association and Venkatachalapathi for Vikas Globals. In the agreement, it is clearly mentioned that “Bangalore Airport KSTDC Taxi Drivers welfare Association” is a registered association and recognised by the KSTDC! 

How did the KSTDC come to know that the association is registered? The hard fact is that the association is an unregistered one and does not have the registration number which is a must. The MD who is an IFS officer should have at least asked the association to submit by laws and registration certificate so that it can be recognised! And the ground reality is that this bogus association has not conducted general body meetings, audited the accounts and held elections since 2002. 

In fact, after the series of exposures by ‘TBMR’, the Taxi drivers who were treated like bonded labourers by Neelakantappa gang, revolted against the gang. To show that the association is genuine, Neelakantappa gang called a general body of the association on 26-05-2012. When TBMR revealed that the association is a bogus one, the general body meeting was cancelled hours before it was to start and the gang disappeared from the scene. Still, more than 150 Taxi drivers held the general body and nominated a new set of office bearers and gave them the mandate to register the Association which they later did it under the name of “Bangalore International Airport KSTDC Taxi Drivers Welfare Association”. 

When all these developments, agreements etc are in black and white, the KSTDC in its RTI reply has shockingly mentioned that “there is no agreement between the KSTDC and the Bangalore Airport KSTDC Taxi Drivers Welfare Association”. More shockingly, the same KSTDC has given the copy of the tripartite agreement between KSTDC, Bangalore Airport KSTDC Taxi Drivers Welfare Association and Vikas Global solutions! Then, which is right and which is wrong? One should appreciate the guts and nerve of the KSTDC top brass to provide such white lies in writing? Giving false information to RTI queries is unimaginable and the KSTDC officials have blatantly done that. 

That is all!