A week after Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s instructions to procure electric buses, Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot undertook a stocktaking trip on Wednesday to assess the functioning of battery-operated vehicles here.
Daily meetings
A bus manufacturing company’s representatives met Mr. Gahlot and made a presentation of their vehicle. The Minister and the officials concerned inspected the e-bus, a Delhi government official said, adding that the government had fast-paced the procurement process for these e-buses.
“The process for procurement of 500 buses has been fast-tracked. Daily meetings are being held to work out the economics of the purchase and available technology to choose the best available and cost-effective buses,” the official said.
The decision to buy these e-buses was made in a meeting chaired by Mr. Kejriwal. The Delhi government has chalked out a “short-term plan” to procure 500 low-floor air-conditioned e-buses.
The Transport Minister also met the Delhi Multi Modal Transit System (DIMTS) officials in connection with e-buses. The government will buy the buses through the Environment Cess fund of over ₹1,000 crore that has not been used much so far.
Given the substantial price tag of such vehicles, the government is currently in the process of conducting a cost-benefit analysis to ascertain the future course of action in relation to such vehicles.