PRTC floats tenders for buying 255 buses after dept’s nod

PATIALA : The Pepsu Road Transport Corporation (PRTC) has floated the tenders for purchasing 255 new buses as part of its fleet after getting the final nod from the state transport department.

With the addition of these buses, the PRTC will replace the old ones which are running beyond their life span. “The corporation is wasting money in repairing and maintaining the old buses. The new buses will help PRTC save money and provide better transport facilities,” said a senior official of transport department. The buses will cost the corporation nearly Rs 60 crore, he said.

In a meeting chaired by chief minister Amarinder Singh on May 26, PRTC chairman KK Sharma informed that the transport department delayed clearing of the file on adding new buses. On the CM’s direction, the principal secretary (transport) gave accord to the corporation for the purchase.

“The expenses on purchasing and fabrication will be borne by PRTC only. The corporation is also mooting a plan to take a bank loan of Rs 32 crore,” another official said.

PRTC managing director Bhupinderpal

Singh said, “The technical bid will be opened soon so that the chassis can be purchased so as to complete fabrication work at the earliest.”

Presently, the corporation is running a fleet of 1,113 buses, including 150 hired ones, in its nine depots – Ludhiana, Kapurthala, Chandigarh, Patiala, Bathinda, Budhlada, Barnala, Faridkot and Sangrur.

The new PRTC buses will be fitted with GPS (global positioning system), CCTV (closed-circuit television) cameras, public information system and fuel-monitoring mechanism to keep tabs on wastage and pilferage of diesel.