The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) Undertaking has decided to commercially exploit five more properties in the city and suburbs. The undertaking has also allocated Rs 26 crore for buying 112 more buses in 2011-12 The BEST administration had put forward the proposal of developing these five properties as part of its budget for 2011-12. The BEST is already developing its six depots in the city and suburbs through private partnership. We have now identified five more properties to be developed, said BEST general manager Om Prakash Gupta. We have also asked the government to permit us to use 50 per cent of the area for commercial purposes and the rest for our operations. Under the existing laws,we can give 30 per cent of the land for commercial use. The BEST has also planned to bring down its losses in the transport segment from Rs 375 crore in 2010-11 to Rs 295 crore in 2011-12. Since there is a rise in tariff per unit,our losses in the electricity segment have increased by over Rs 237 crore. And for sustaining the overall losses of the undertaking,we have to reduce the losses of the transport undertaking. The surplus funds earned by BEST in the electricity segment were earlier diverted to the transport segment to make it economically viable.
