Mumbai, Apr 15 (PTI) The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) on Tuesday disbursed the remaining tranche of the March salary to its employees, officials said.

The state-owned corporation deposited remaining 44 per cent portion of employees’ salary into their account in the afternoon as announced last week, they said.

The cash-strapped public transport body had paid only 56 per cent portion of their salary to its more than 80,000 employees due to financial crunch last week.

Generally, the corporation disburses salary to its employees on seventh day of every month.

After sharp criticism from the opposition, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had announced that the remaining portion of the MSRTC employees’ salaries will be disbursed on April 15.

On the same day, Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik, who assumed charge as the 26th chairman of the MSRTC had assured that the employees would be paid their salaries on the seveth day of every month.

He also held talks with the state finance secretary to resolve the issue, following which the state government released Rs 120 crore.

The MSRTC is one of the largest state-owned road transport corporations in the country with a fleet of more than 14,000 buses and the workforce of over 80,000. Daily, it ferries around 60 lakh passengers on urban and rural routes. PTI KK NP