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In tune with the state government’s green transit plan, the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) plans to convert 5,000 diesel-run buses to Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) on Monday. As part of the same initiative, the Pune division will receive 250 electric buses by March next year.
The initiative, announced by the Deputy Chief Minister in the 2023-2024 budget speech, has now received a green signal from the home department. The conversion process, which will span four years, is set to receive a total funding of Rs 970 crore.
The allocation will be disbursed over four financial years, from 2024-25 to 2027-28. The initial amount allocated in the year 2024-25 will be Rs 40 crore, which will increase to Rs 200 crore in FY 2025-26. The amount will then grow to Rs 370 crore in FY 2026-27 and Rs 360 crore in FY 2027-28.
Pramod Nehul, an MSRTC official in the Pune division, said that as part of the initiative to adopt green mobility solutions, MSRTC plans to add 5,150 electric buses to its fleet across the state. Of which, 250 electric buses are mentioned as ‘awaiting’ for Pune.
“The plan has been bifurcated based on Maharashtra’s regions; thus LNG and CNG buses will be provided to Nagpur and coastal regions like Konkan where pipelines are available. However, regions like Marathwada and Pune will receive electric buses, as CNG rates are high in these areas,” he said.
“We are waiting for 250 electric buses to be deployed in Pune, which, according to higher authorities, are expected to arrive by March 2025,” Nehul added.
Nehul also informed that currently, 824 MSRTC buses are operating in Pune, consisting of 200 CNG buses, 64 electric buses, 450 Ordinary High-Speed Diesel (ORD HSD) buses, and 110 AC High-Speed Diesel (AC HSD) buses.
According to an official resolution dated August 26, 2024, provided by MSRTC official Abhijeet Bhosle of Mumbai division, the proposal was finalised last year following a high-level meeting on September 22, where the plan to convert diesel buses to LNG was discussed in detail. The official document stated that a total of 5,000 LNG buses would be inducted, with each bus costing Rs 19.4 lakh, totalling Rs 970 crore.
As per MSRTC, the transport corporation currently has a total of 15,000 buses in its fleet, with 60,000 commuters traveling daily across Maharashtra.
