Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday flagged off 225 electric buses for four cities – 50 buses each in Bhavnagar (Gujarat) and Nagpur (Maharashtra), 25 for Chandigarh (UT) and 100 for Guwahati (Assam) under the PM e-Bus Sewa Scheme.
For residents of Bhavnagar, one of the eight old municipal corporations of Gujarat and one of four major cities of Saurashtra, the PM e-bus Sewa scheme will be a big boost as the city currently has no form of public bus transport service.
“We do not have public transport in Bhavnagar. There was a bus service earlier but it was privatised some years ago and it was shut down later. With the scheme, cities across India will receive 10,000 electric buses of which Bhavnagar will get 100, which will revive public transport in the city,” said Bhavnagar Municipal Commissioner Narender Kumar Meena.
In February 2025, it was reported that JBM EcoLife Mobility, a subsidiary of JBM Auto based in Gurgaon, won the Rs 5,500 crore tender to supply, operate and maintain 1,021 electric buses in 19 cities of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Haryana, including 100 in Bhavnagar, under the PM e-Bus Sewa Scheme-2.
Logistics and routes
The Bhavnagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) received 50 buses about a fortnight ago and the buses began plying on eight urban routes on Saturday after the flag off in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi.
The initial routes include:
Route 1: Gangajaliya to Top 3 Circle
Route 4: Gangajaliya to Adhewada village
Route 6: Gangajaliya to Akwada village
Route 8: Gangajaliya to Shantilal Shah College
Route 9: Bhavnagar Terminal to Bhandaria village
Route 11: Gangajaliya to Shihor
Route 12: Gangajaliya to Valukad
Route 13: Gangajaliya to Nishkalank Mahadev
The other 50 buses are likely to arrive in the next 2 months, said senior officials, taking the total to 100 buses. They will run on 17 routes in the urban (9) and suburban (8) areas of Bhavnagar as well as villages falling within 15 km of the city.
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“We have started with 8 routes now and when the other buses arrive, we will expand to 17 routes. The fare has been kept very economical and the rates will be decided time-to-time by Bhavnagar Green Gati Limited (BGGL), a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) set up to run the service,” said Meena, who is also the ex-officio chairman of the SPV.
The service is initially expected to benefit more than 3,000 people after its full-fledged operation.
Funding & fare
For passengers, the air conditioned buses will cost Rs 5 up to 3 km, Rs 10 between 3-5 km, Rs 15 between 5-8 km and Rs 20 for above 8 km travel.
The total cost of the new e-bus programme to the Bhavnagar Municipal Corporation (BMC) is Rs 368.40 crore – Rs 350 crore for running costs for 50 buses over the next 12 years – and Rs18.24 crore has been already spent to build the infrastructure for the service in the form of a new bus depot, offices, and civilian facilities meant for the operation of these electric vehicles. The corporation will receive a grant of Rs 103 crore from the Centre over the 12 years.
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“Over the last 18 months, we set up the bus depot at a cost of Rs18.24 crore. JBM Group will supply and maintain these vehicles. They have already deployed 50 buses and the others will come in the next 2 months. The company had quoted an operating cost of Rs 26 per kilometre. This will be recovered from the tickets, there is some share of the Centre and if there is any deficit, the amount will be borne by the corporation,” Meena said.
A fare collection application, an online ticket booking system, smart card for cashless payments and a live bus tracking system have been integrated into the service.
