In a bid to ensure BEST drivers are healthy, Yuva Sena chief Aaditya Thackeray wants the staff on the bus service to seek the help of nutritionists.
"The BEST administration, apart from conducting regular health check-ups, should also take help of nutritionists. The drivers should be provided drinks with glucose to keep them hydrated," said Thackeray at Wadala bus depot after inaugurating electric buses on November 10.
The BEST officials said that they can make provision to offer energetic drinks to drivers and conductors when they arrive at the bus station or depot after their trip, especially during summer. This has been proposed so that drivers don't get dehydrated riding buses for long hours.
Thackeray asked BEST General Manager Dr Surendra Bagde to personally look into this as he is also a nutritionist.
Earlier, Four buses have been added to the fleet on Thursday. The introduced buses can run up to 200 km at a stretch once fully charged for three hours.
For the initial phase, the buses will run on routes around Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSTM) and Churchgate station, including Route Number 138.
The buses cost Rs. 1.61 crore each, which is more than double the price of regular buses and have a seating capacity of 30 people.
Meanwhile the BEST employees are struggling to get their salaries on time for which the administration is taking monthly loans of Rs 180 crore. Sources said that if they take the extra effort of having nutritionists and having diet plans for their drivers and conductors then it would add up to the cost.
Normally a BEST bus driver operates for 6-9 hours depending on his schedule and route allotted. A single bus runs up to 180 km each day in Mumbai. BEST's fleet has 3700 buses and operates 504 routes every day.
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