Bengaluru
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has instructed officials from the Transport Department to expedite the process of acquiring 5,675 buses. During a review of the transport department’s progress on Saturday, the Chief Minister noted that the number of bus passengers has increased by 15 percent, primarily due to the Shakti scheme, which offers free travel for women. In light of this increase in ridership, he suggested the addition of buses to support additional schedules and provide improved service. A budget of ₹500 crore has been allocated for the purchase of new buses. The meeting also addressed issues related to revenue collection targets for the transport department and financial management of transport corporations. Officials reported that ₹83 crore in fines have been collected through vehicle inspections. Key attendees at the meeting included Transport Minister Ramalingareddy, Chief Minister’s Political Secretaries Govindaraju and Naseer Ahmed, Chief Minister’s Secretary Ziaullah, Finance Department Secretary P.C. Zafar, Transport Department Secretary N.V. Prasad, and managing directors of all transport corporations.
