Amid growing discontent among Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) employees over pending salaries and pensions, the state budget for 2025-26 highlighted the substantial financial support extended to the corporation over the past years. Finance Minister KN Balagopal announced that the government has disbursed Rs 6,965 crore to KSRTC in the last three and a half years.

He said that since the first Pinarayi Vijayan-led government took office in 2016, KSRTC has received a total of Rs 11,787.80 crore. The Finance Minister contrasted this with the UDF-led Oommen Chandy government (2011-2016), which allocated Rs 1,220.82 crore to the state transport corporation. Between 2016 and 2021, the first term of the Pinarayi government provided Rs 4,923.58 crore, marking a fourfold increase compared to the previous administration.

Since the government retained power in 2021, KSRTC has received Rs 6,864.22 crore — 5.6 times the amount allocated between 2011 and 2016 and 1.4 times more than the funds provided during 2016-2021, according to the 2025-26 budget document. Additionally, since 2021, Rs 178.96 crore has been set aside for infrastructure development, depot modernisation, and e-governance initiatives.

The Finance Minister said that 900 off-road buses were in operation in early 2024, but this number had been reduced to under 500 by September 2024.

Key allocations for KSRTC
1. Rs 107 crore for fleet modernisation by replacing old buses with new BS-VI diesel models.
2. Rs 2 crore to operationalise bus depots and services at Cheruthoni, Idukki.
3. Rs 38.70 crore for infrastructure upgrades and workshop modernisation.
4. Rs 12 crore for e-governance initiatives.