Electric Buses Will Run On Roads Of Jammu & Kashmir, First Batch Of 10 Buses Inducted In Fleet

The buzz around electric buses in India has been on a rise, with many states in the country already inducting these in their transport fleet. The latest state to add its name to this list is Jammu and Kashmir, with the region now receiving its first ever fleet of electric buses under a central scheme.

As per reports, a total of 10 electric buses have been procured by J&K State Road Transport Corporation. Quoting some officials, the report mentions that a trial run of the electric buses took place on Saturday between Vijaypur to Rail Head complex area in Jammu.

The electric buses have been procured by the authority from Tata Motors and the plan is to add 30 more of such zero-emission vehicles in the fleet over time. Once the total count of 40 is achieved, 20 electric buses each will be run on the roads of Jammu and Kashmir.

The buses, however, will only be run commercially after the model code of conduct (MCC) is over in May, which is presently in effect due to the ongoing general elections. "Keeping in view the model code of conduct, the buses shall become operational only in May when the Lok Sabha elections are over,¡± the report quoted the official as saying.

(Representative Image: BCCL)

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As for the electric buses being appointed, the 30 to 32 seater buses, can be customised in regards with their seating arrangement as per the state¡¯s requirements, the official mentioned. Branded as the ¡®New Horizon Vehicles¡¯, the buses cost around Rs 1 crore each and have been procured under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme. 60 percent of the cost of these buses will be borne by the centre while the rest 40 percent will be paid by the state government. The buses have been manufactured in a plant in Karnataka.

Tata Motors has also been laden with the responsibility of training the JKSRTC drivers before the electric buses are put into operation. Similarly, the company will conduct training sessions for the mechanical staff which will be handling the maintenance of these buses. ¡°Tata Motors apart from supplying the buses will be responsible for the after-sale service,¡± the official said.

Interestingly, the electric buses also come with fast charging, which promises a full charge within 2 to 3 hours. ¡°We are supplying the buses with a feature called ¡®fast charging¡¯. While as in ¡®slow charging¡¯ features, the charging time is 5-6 hours which can be done when the vehicle halts during the night,¡± the official confirmed. The buses are said to cover around 150 kilometres on a single charge.

With the advent of such electric vehicles in the country, India is soon expected to be the biggest market for EVs across all segments. While the government is pushing to increase their use in the public transportation, a similar push is being made by the industry players on the personal vehicles sector. Once the mass adoption is achieved, these vehicles are supposed to be the key answers to the rising environmental pollution noted across regions in the country.