The RTC bus depot to come up at Tagarapuvalasa will become a hub for operation of RTC buses to the city, towards Anakapalle and Pendurthy and towards Vizianagaram and Srikakulam on the other, said Minister for HRD Ganta Srinivasa Rao.
The Minister laid the foundation for construction of the bus depot in the presence of RTC MD N. Sambasiva Rao and other RTC officials on Sunday.
Addressing the gathering, the Minister said demand for the RTC depot was pending since long. It had not materialised in the past due to land acquisition issues. “I got it approved in the Cabinet, after convincing the Chief Minister. This would be the first depot in the State to be taken up at a cost of Rs.7 crore. The contractor has been asked to complete the construction in six months,” he said.
The four-lane Beach Road from Visakhapatnam to Bheemunipatnam, the IT and Tourism projects and the Bhogapuram International Airport would ensure a lot of activity and movement of people from Bheemunipatnam and Tagarapuvalasa and the RTC would provide the much-needed connectivity.
Responding to the plea of former MLA and Telugu Desam leader R.S.D.P. Appalanarasimha Raju, the Minister said a passenger terminal would also be constructed in the same compound.
Mr. Sambasiva Rao said the Tagarapuvalsa Depot would have a bright future in view of the proposed merger of area in the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) and the surrounding areas witnessing a lot of development activities.
He hailed the initiative taken by the Minister and Collector N. Yuvraj in handing over the 4.9 acre land to the RTC. He said all the required measures would be taken to prevent possible flooding.
He said the modernisation of 103 bus stations in the State would be taken up at a cost of Rs.33 crore.
