Shimla: Himachal Pradesh is set to scale up its green public transport sector with the imminent rollout of new electric buses across the state. Presiding over the 163rd Board of Directors (BoD) meeting of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC), Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri directed officials to expedite all pending operational formalities to dedicated these services to the public. Along with the e-buses, four new e-depots will also be made operational soon.
The meeting extensively reviewed passenger amenities, operational efficiency, and the progress of trials for the 297 electric buses being inducted in a phased manner.
Agnihotri, who also holds the transport portfolio, expressed strong displeasure over the shortage of tyres and spare parts in the HRTC fleet. He instructed officials to ensure that no bus remains grounded due to a lack of maintenance materials, directing them to establish advance alternative arrangements so that passenger services remain uninterrupted.
The ongoing trials of the new e-buses also came up for a detailed review. The manufacturing company had previously stated that the buses deliver a mileage of 180 km on a single charge. However, the mileage dropped during trials on two specific routes in the Shimla district. While the company blamed poor road conditions and requested an exemption from trials on these two routes, the HRTC management rejected the plea after reviewing an assessment report by the Public Works Department (PWD).
The corporation clarified that these e-buses will only operationalise after successful trials across alternative routes. Out of the total order of 297 e-buses, 150 have already arrived in the state and have been allocated to 9 different depots.
According to the allocation breakdown, Una and Hamirpur depots have received 35 buses each, Bilaspur 20, Nalagarh and Nahan 15 each, Dehra and Palampur 10 each, while Dharamshala and Taradevi (Shimla) have been allocated 5 buses each. The remaining units have been distributed in smaller batches of one or two buses to other depots.
In another major decision, the BoD cleared a single-tender bid for the supply of tyres and lubricants. The tender had to be canceled twice earlier due to single-bidder participation, but the board gave its approval after the same lone company emerged during the third bidding round.
Furthermore, the board approved the purchase of 50 new batteries for the older electric buses currently in the HRTC fleet. These will be maintained under an Annual Maintenance Contract (AMC) with the respective manufacturing company, which will handle all repair works.
The high-level meeting was attended by HRTC Vice-Chairman Ajay Verma, BoD members Dharmendra Dhami, Pradeep Surya, Mohinder Sandhu, and Nishant Thakur, Additional Secretary (Transport) Omkar Chand Sharma, and Managing Director Dr. Nipun Jindal, along with other senior corporation officials.
