Rajasthan steps into a pollution-free era of public transport; new age e-buses start running in Jaipur and Bhilwara

Rajasthan on Saturday stepped into an era of modern and eco-friendly public transport as new-age electric buses hit the road in Jaipur and Bhilwara, offering commuters a pollution-free, safe and comfortable ride.

Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma today launched the e-bus service of Jaipur City Transport Service Limited (JCTSL) by flagging off 29 e-buses for their maiden run on the respective city routes.

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He flagged off the buses at a function at Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial here and later bought a ticket for himself to take a ride on the bus from Amar Jawan Jyoti to the state hangar at Jaipur International Airport in Sanganer.

Before riding the bus the CM also launched virtually via video conference the similar E-bus service for the textile town of Bhilwara. He flagged off 18 e-Buses for Bhilwara city.

This service is being launched under the PM E-Bus Seva, which was introduced in August 2023, Sharma said, adding: “A total of 675 electric buses equipped with CCTV cameras, panic button, and other facilities have been sanctioned for 8 cities – Jaipur, Bhilwara, Ajmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Kota, Bikaner and Alwar – under the scheme. Besides this, an additional 475 e-buses have been sanctioned for the state, taking the total to 1150.”

Sharma said that in the first phase, 675 e- buses would be provided to the state under the scheme by Diwali. Of these, 555 buses would be provided for city transport services, while 50 double-decker e-buses will be used for tourist movement.