BHUBANESWAR: Odisha ranks five among all states in the country in e-mobility, and over 500 more buses will be added to the existing fleet of e-buses for promotion of sustainable urban transport, Housing and Urban Development minister Krushna Chandra Mahapatra said on Thursday.
Citing the Government of India statistics, the minister said the country has around 14,329 e-buses operating in different cities of which Delhi has 3,564 followed by 3,296 in Maharashtra, 2,236 in Karnataka and 850 in Uttar Pradesh.
Odisha, with 450 e-buses, ranks just behind these big states. In fact, the state has significantly outpaced neighbouring West Bengal (391), Andhra Pradesh (238), Chhattisgarh (215), and Jharkhand (46), taking decisive steps to integrate sustainable and cost-effective electric mobility in urban areas.
“Odisha has emerged as a frontrunner in sustainable urban transport. To continue with its green mobility vision, the state will increase its current fleet of 450 e-buses to 1,000,” Mahapatra said.
He informed that the Centre, under schemes like PM-eBus Sewa and PM E-DRIVE is providing financial assistance to states for promotion of eco-friendly transport. “Under the leadership of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, our endeavour is to build urban centres that are cleaner, greener and sustainable for future generations,” Mahapatra said.
Principal secretary of H&UD department Usha Padhee said charging stations are being set up at depots and terminals, while smart ticketing systems including QR-based payments, NCMC cards, and app-enabled booking, are being introduced to ensure seamless operation of e-buses.
The state government is also preparing for an ambitious expansion of e-bus services to Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, Keonjhar, Berhampur and Angul while the Capital Region Urban Transport (CRUT) is investing in crew training and capacity-building to deliver safe, reliable and commuter-centric services, she added.