Rs 405 cr sanctioned to buy 175 buses under JNNURM
TOI : PUNE: The state government has sanctioned Rs 40.5 crore for purchasing 175 buses for Pune under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Mission (JNNURM).
According to a government resolution dated July 1, 2009, orders have been given to release Rs 40.5 crore as the first instalment to add buses to the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamadal’s (PMPML) fleet.
The funds have been released following a meeting of Pune MP Suresh Kalmadi with state chief minister Ashok Chavan to discuss various issues pertaining to Pune last week.
The GR issued by the state government says that the funds are being released as per the announcement made by the Union Ministry of Urban Development in January this year, that purchase of buses will also be added to the JNNURM funding schemes. The decision was taken in order to improve the public transport system in the 56 mission cities of JNNURM.
Pune was one of the first cities to have received a sanction for its proposal to procure buses, which were expected to hit the roads by May. However, the plan ran into trouble when the PMPML authorities proposed that 250 buses will be air-conditioned and the ownership of another 200 other buses will be with private partners. Later, the election code of conduct was clamped and the whole process was delayed.
A total of 650 buses have been sanctioned and the Rs 40.5-crore-fund will be used to procure the first batch of 175 buses.
The state government has issued orders that the state will take a review every three months to judge the progress in the bus procurement process and the use of funds. Print Emai…More
