BHUBANESWAR: IF things work out as per plan, the State will soon have its exclusive Rajdhani bus service from early November. As the name suggests, Rajdhani bus will connect State Capital with all the district headquarters. For the bus service to be launched by the Odisha State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC), the State Government has sanctioned `40 crore towards procuring new buses. Informing about the initiative, OSRTC Chairman-cum-Managing Director KB Singh said, “In the first phase, about 30 buses will be procured.
The buses will be air-conditioned and equipped with TV, public address system, Wi-Fi, radio and push back seats. The buses will start operating by October-end.” The Corporation officials said Rajdhani bus services will be helpful for people visiting Bhubaneswar frequently for personal and official work. Once the service commences, passengers will reach Bhubaneswar in the morning and can return in the night. For the purpose, bus bays will be developed at several places in the State, Singh said. Each bay will have space to park three to four vehicles and passenger amenities like drinking water, waiting halls, washrooms and tea stalls among others.
Some of the places where the bus bays will be developed are Bamra in Sambalpur, Athagarh, Keonjhar, Aska in Ganjam, Bargarh, Patnagarh in Balangir district and Pattamundai in Kendrapara district, among others. Besides, bus stands will be renovated at Odagaon, Angul, Jeypore and Cuttack and will have facilities like drinking water, waiting halls, washrooms and tea stalls. The Corporation has also acquired about 100 acre of land near Gopalpur in Cuttack to develop an inter-State bus terminal. The officials asserted that the inter-State bus terminal will be developed within three years. The buses, which will be rolled out in the first phase, will also be used to transport the players during the Men’s Hockey World Cup scheduled in the Capital this year.
