For the first time in the history of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), a private individual has donated money to help the state carrier purchase a bus. Jose K T, owner of He-Man Robo Park and a native of Angamaly, handed over a cheque for Rs. 4 mn to Chief Minister V D Satheesan in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.

The donation was made in response to the chief minister’s appeal to individuals, societies and companies to contribute corporate social responsibility funds towards upgrading KSRTC. Jose said he had long wanted to support the state’s public transport system and decided to contribute after learning about the appeal.

Jose first discussed the proposal with the vice-president of the Angamaly block panchayat, who subsequently contacted Higher Education Minister Roji M John, the MLA representing Angamaly. The proposal was then conveyed to Transport Minister C P John before reaching the chief minister.

Satheesan invited Jose to Thiruvananthapuram, where they held a brief meeting before the entrepreneur handed over the cheque. The chief minister subsequently passed the cheque to the transport minister for further action on the bus purchase.

Jose has requested that the bus be assigned to the Angamaly depot so that it can operate services from the town. He indicated that the contribution would be sufficient for an air-conditioned low-floor bus and said the request had received the support of the Angamaly MLA.

He also suggested that the vehicle could be used for KSRTC’s budget tourism initiative, proposing a route between Angamaly and Athirapally. The proposal was presented as a suggestion rather than a condition attached to the donation, according to the report.