Bengaluru | The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation is set to foray into the logistics business by deploying 20 trucks in the first phase to kickstart the venture, officials said on Friday.

The state-run KSRTC has already placed an order to buy these vehicles, which are expected to be delivered from Pune by December 10, they said.

Karnataka Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy said the KSRTC is expecting to earn a revenue of Rs 100 crore annually from the logistics business.

"We have around 8,000 buses with KSRTC and each of these buses has space for luggage. Earlier, they used to call for tender and award the luggage space on these buses to a private contractor who would in turn charge a fee for customers using the space. This way, the corporation (KSRTC) earned Rs three crore a year," he told PTI.

However, the minister said the KSRTC started booking the space itself last year for the first time through agents who were given 20 per cent commission for booking parcels. That way, in one year, the revenue of KSRTC jumped from Rs three crore to Rs 13 crore annually.

This prompted the KSRTC to venture into the logistics business independently and propose having its own fleet of vehicles for the venture, Reddy said.

"The corporation suggested buying 10 trucks but I suggested they start with 20 trucks in the first phase. So, each of these trucks would cost us about Rs 17 lakh. The KSRTC will have 20 trucks which will be delivered to them by December 10 from Pune," he added.

Noting that the KSRTC has enough manpower to venture into the logistics business, Reddy said, "We have manpower, bus stands and depots throughout the state. Just like how you book tickets, this service can also be availed and booked even via certain apps. The service as of now will be limited to the state of Karnataka and with this, KSRTC is expected to make a revenue of Rs 100 crore every year."