Transport body to submit report on plan to buy 1,000 e-buses

NEWDELHI: Taking its mega plan of inducting 1,000 electric buses in Delhi further, the Delhi government said that the project consultant, Delhi Integrated MultiModal Transit System (DIMTS), has been asked to first submit a detailed techno-financial assessment of the project.

The government said transport minister Kailash Gahlot himself held detailed discussions with all existing suppliers of electric buses before going ahead with the plan to roll out 1,000 e-buses. “The suppliers are confident of supplying 1,000 electric buses to Delhi,” the minister said.

On July 15, Hindustan Times had reported that the proposal was approved by the Delhi cabinet overruling objections raised by various departments. The transport minister had then said that all over India, only 30 electric buses are currently operational and that Delhi is going to be a model for EV public transport system.

“If we go on to consider prior experience in deploying electric buses in public transport in substantial numbers as the only yardstick for expertise, then given the number of electric buses in operation in India or anywhere outside China, which has 99% of world’s electric bus fleet, the only firms that might qualify are Chinese firms,” Gahlot said.

Refuting allegations raised by the transport department that DIMTS did not have the expertise to get 1,000 e-buses in Delhi, the minister said that the agency, in which the government has 50% stake, is “well regarded as among India’s leading urban transportation consultancy firm”.

“It has already rendered advice to Dehradun, Ranchi, Dhanbad and Jamshedpur on their electric mobility plans. Moreover, DIMTS is not going to be operating the buses itself, that will be the job of private concessionaires, who will be selected via competitive global bidding,” he said adding that when CNG buses were first introduced in Delhi and India around 10 years back, it was DIMTS that was appointed as the consultant for that project as well.