MUMBAI, July 30 -- In the last two years, the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking recovered Rs.16.52 crore in financial penalties from wet-lease operators for failure to deploy buses from depots, breach of traffic rules by drivers, and bus accidents. According to data with the undertaking, the administration levied Rs.9.22 crore for failure to deploy buses from depots since January this year. Sources said 18,438 such cases were registered against eight wet-lease operators. "Despite maintenance schedules, the operators failed to deploy their buses for the day. This inconvenienced passengers as we could not run those trips. It also leads to loss of revenue," said a BEST official. BEST operates 2,800-odd buses on 402 routes, catering to around 2.2 million passengers daily. Between July 2025 and June 2026, the BEST initiated disciplinary action against drivers employed by its wet-lease operators, reflecting heightened enforcement following a series of accidents involving these outsourced buses. The data shows that Rs.6.54 crore was recovered in penalties for irregularities in driving and issues with discipline, accounting for 88,274 irregularities detected across eight wet-lease operators during the one-year period. Apart from penalising the drivers, the undertaking also imposed financial penalties on wet-lease contractors for accidents. The penalties increased sharply in 2025-26, with accident-related fines rising due to stricter enforcement as accident numbers climbed. Over the last two financial years combined, BEST recovered Rs.76.05 lakh in accident-related penalties from wet-lease contractors. During 2024-25 alone, accident-related penalties amounted to Rs.28.38 lakh, with Maruti Travels paying Rs.14,50,550, followed by Tata Motors at Rs.11,64,285. Other operators including Switch Mobility, EV Trans, Olectra and Mateshwari Urban Transport accounted for the remaining penalties. "We are very serious about levying penalties on wet lease operators. Because of them, the BEST is losing the trust of citizens," said Trushna Vishwasrao, chairperson of the BEST committee. The action comes against the backdrop of growing public concern over the safety of BEST's outsourced fleet. There have been 20 major and minor accidents involving BEST buses this year alone, involving ten fatalities. As a result, driver training, driver fatigue, bus maintenance standards and lack of oversight on wet-lease operators have come under the scanner....