RTC drivers being sent for periodical medical examinations: Minister

Hyderabad: Transport Minister Mahender Reddy on Friday admitted that three cases of RTC drivers succumbing to death due to heart attack while driving buses have been reported in the recent past.

He was replying to a question raised by MLCs Katepally Janardhan Reddy and Poola Ravinder in Legislative Council during Question Hour. He said it was not often that RTC Bus Drivers succumbed to death due to heart attack while driving buses. The enquiry into recent deaths has revealed that they had no history of diseases. The reason could be sudden cardiac arrest, he said.

The minister informed that the RTC drivers are sent for periodical medical examination under Al category at the end of every three years calculated from the date of appointment until he attains the age of 45 years and thereafter annually.

If a driver is found unfit by medical officer due to chronic decease in periodical medical examination, he will be directed to Superintendent and the Chief Medical Officer, RTC Hospital to the medical board at Tarnaka Hospital for assessing his fitness and further course of action. There is thorough medical examination procedure in place to monitor the health of the drivers keeping in view the passengers safety.

The systems include pre-induction medical examination, periodical medical examinations and special medical examinations which are regularly performed on the drivers as per schedule, and if any, abnormality is detected or if an employee has any high risk factors, they are evaluated thoroughly at RTC Hospital, Tarnaka, he said.