In a bid to enhance green mobility, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the ‘PM-eBus Sewa’ scheme, which will provide 10,000 electric buses to 169 cities in a public-private partnership (PPP) mode.
The estimated cost of the scheme is Rs. 57,613 Crores out of which Rs. Union Minister Anurag Thakur told a press conference that the central government will provide Rs 20,000 crore and the rest will be borne by the states.
Priority will be given to cities without organized bus services, he said. The Information and Broadcasting Minister said the program will last until 2037.
Ten thousand electric buses will be deployed under PPP mode, he said, adding that infrastructure in 181 cities will also be upgraded under the green urban mobility initiative.
The plan is divided into two parts – enhancing urban bus services in 169 cities and green urban mobility initiatives in 181 cities.
The Union Cabinet, meeting under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the ‘PM-eBus Sewa’ scheme with a total outlay of Rs. 57,613 crore, the minister said.
The electric buses will be available in cities with populations between 500,000 and 4 million, he said, adding that the program would support bus operations for 10 years.
“These cities will be selected through challenges (of the programme). Non-motorised transport will also be provided to aid public transport in these cities,” he said.
Thakur said 50 buses will be provided in cities with a population of less than 500,000, 100 buses in cities with a population of 500,000 to 20 lakh and 150 buses in cities with a population of 200,000 to 40 lakh.
More buses will be provided to cities that are scrapping old buses. He said the buses will be procured, operated and maintained under PPP mode and central assistance will be provided under the scheme.
“The government of India will allocate Rs 20,000 crore, of which Rs 15,930 crore will be spent on buses, Rs 2,264 crore for infrastructure development and back-end facilities, and Rs 1,506 crore for green urban transport,” he said.
“While states will bear 40 per cent of the cost, the Center will provide 60 per cent assistance to states under the scheme,” the minister said. Thakur said that in hill states, union territories and northeastern states, the Center will provide 90 per cent assistance under the scheme and the rest will be borne by them.
Under the plan, cities would be responsible for operating bus services and paying bus operators, the federal Department of Housing and Urban Affairs said in a statement.
The central government will provide subsidies within the scope specified in the proposed plan to support these bus operations, it said, adding that priority will be given to cities without organized bus services.
While presenting the Union Budget 2021-22, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a Rs 18,000-crore plan to enhance public transport in urban areas.
“The (bus) program will promote electric mobility and provide comprehensive support for behind-the-meter electric infrastructure. Support for transit-first infrastructure will not only accelerate the adoption of state-of-the-art, energy-efficient electric buses, but will also promote innovation in electric mobility and the development of a resilient supply chain for electric vehicles,” a statement released on Wednesday said.
It said the scheme will cover cities with a population of 300,000 and above as per the 2011 Census data, including all capital cities in the Union Territory, Northeastern Region and hill states.
Thakur said the scheme will create 45,000 to 55,000 direct jobs by deploying around 10,000 buses in city bus operations.
Two components of the plan are strengthening urban bus services in 169 cities and green urban transport initiatives in 181 cities.
“The associated infrastructure will provide support for development/upgradation of depot infrastructure and creation of behind-the-meter power infrastructure (substations, etc.) for electric buses,” it said.
In the second part, the plan envisages green initiatives such as bus priority, infrastructure, intermodal interchange facilities, NCMC-based automated fare collection system and charging infrastructure.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
