Cabinet of India approves PM e-bus Sewa

New Delhi- The Cabinet which is presided over by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the bus program "PM-eBus Sewa" for boosting city bus service by 10,000 e-buses on a PPP model. The anticipated cost of the Scheme is INR 57,613 crore, of which the central government will contribute INR 20,000 crore in assistance. For a period of ten years, the Scheme will fund bus operations.

The program will cover all the capitals of Union Territories, the North Eastern Region, and Hill States, as well as cities with a total population of three lakh or higher as of the 2011 Census. Priority will be given to cities with no established bus service under this plan. Through this plan, an estimate of  45000 to 55000 direct jobs would be facilitated through the deployment of 10,000 buses for urban commute.

There are two parts to the Scheme:

Segment A: 169 cities with expanded city bus services

The approved bus plan would add 10,000 e-buses to city bus operations under a Public Private Partnership (PPP) approach.

The creation of behind-the-meter power infrastructure (substation, etc.) for e-buses as well as the development and upgrading of depot infrastructure will be supported by Associated Infrastructure.

Segment B: Green Urban Mobility Initiatives (GUMI) covering for 181 cities

The plan includes green policies such bus priority, infrastructure, facilities for multimodal interchange, Automated Fare Collection Systems based on NCMC, charging infrastructure, etc.

Support for Operation: In accordance with the plan, States/Cities are in responsible of managing the bus operations and paying the bus operators.  To the degree outlined in the proposed arrangement, the Central Government will subsidize these bus operations.

E-Mobility Boost:

The program will support behind-the-meter electricity infrastructure fully and encourage e-mobility.

Cities will also receive assistance from the Green Urban Mobility Initiatives for the construction of charging infrastructure.

The promotion of bus priority infrastructure will not only hasten the spread of modern, energy-efficient electric buses but will also encourage e-mobility innovation and the creation of a dependable supply chain for electric cars.

Through the aggregation of e-buses, this plan will also result in cost savings for the purchase of electric buses.

Switching to electric mobility will cut back on carbon emissions as well as noise and air pollution.

The growth in bus-based public transit will cause a modal shift that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions.