A dispute has erupted between the Mira-Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) and the contractor operating its civic transport service over pending dues and multiple contractual issues. After the civic body issued a notice to terminate the contract, the contractor approached the court. The court has now directed that the matter be heard by a commercial court. Meanwhile, ordinary commuters are bearing the brunt of the conflict. With fewer buses on the roads and many of them old and poorly maintained, passengers face daily inconvenience. Breakdowns are frequent, services are unreliable, and frustration among commuters continues to rise as the dispute drags on.
Between 2015 and 2016, MBMC received 48 diesel buses free of cost, followed by 10 buses during 2017–18 and another 16 in 2020, taking the total fleet to 74. In 2023, the contract to operate these buses was awarded to M/s Mahalaxmi MBMT LLP. However, due to ageing vehicles and inadequate maintenance, many buses have become unfit for service. Currently, only around 35 to 40 buses are operational. These buses serve distant areas such as Uttan, Chowk, Pali, Morwa, Dongri, Rai, Murdha, and Gorai–Manori, where civic transport is a vital and affordable lifeline for residents.
The contractor has challenged the termination notice in court, and on December 10, the Thane court instructed both parties to pursue the case in a commercial court, where further hearings will take place. The company has alleged that MBMC failed to rectify technical flaws in the contract, imposed arbitrary penalties, withheld payments linked to fuel and spare part price hikes, and even forced payment of bonuses not mandated by rules. The contractor claims mounting debts running into crores. This is not the first such case; earlier, MBMC was ordered by an arbitration tribunal in 2023 to pay ₹8.65 crore in compensation to a previous transport contractor.