Licence scam in DTC: Vigilance probe ordered

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

After criticism from the traffic police for the increasing number of accidents by the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses, the corporation is facing heat from within its ranks. Instances of licences that didn't sustain verification have now prompted the DTC to set up an internal vigilance inquiry into licences submitted by over 2,000 drivers. While the inquiry report is still awaited, sources said that initial findings have shown that some of the licences submitted were fakes.

Top sources in the transport department said that the matter came to light some months ago during a routine verification. The official said, "The details submitted (by one of the drivers) showed that the licence had been issued from the state licensing authority in Manipur. But the man had no knowledge of the state. So the issuing authority was contacted for verification, and it was found that no such licence had been issued to the driver." After this incident, several other "suspicious" licences were sent for verification. Sources in the DTC confirmed that one such licence issued from Bulandshahr has already been found to be false. The official added, "The licences which are being verified were issued not only from Manipur and Nagaland but also from the neighbouring states of Haryana, UP and Rajasthan."

Interestingly, a large number of the cases that have come under cloud are of drivers who were recruited through the Delhi State Subordinate Services Board (DSSSB). The recruitment exam for the DSSSB had taken place in 2009 but results were only announced late last year. DTC officials claimed, however, that only a part of the licences being verified were of drivers recruited through the DSSSB. A government official added, "The board doesn't verify the licences from the issuing authority but only tests the skills of the applicant." Sources, however, say that this is the first time that such a large-scale verification of licences has been carried out, especially of those coming in through the board. "It's a serious matter, and we are hoping to weed out the culprits soon," added the official.

Not surprisingly, officially, the department says the verification is a "routine" drive. The official said, "Licences of almost 2,000 drivers are being verified on a routine basis." Sources though claim that the internal vigilance report will be coming in shortly, and that action was expected to be taken as soon as the findings were made available. Meanwhile, the inquiry has put a hiatus on current recruitment in the DTC, admitted officials.

Original news source http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-04-13/delhi/29413169_1_licence-scam-dtc-officials-delhi-transport-corporation