Bhubaneswar: Private buses will start rolling across the state from Thursday, secretary of Private Bus Owners’ Association Debendra Sahu said Wednesday.
The decision was taken after the association held a series of meetings with the state government over the issue.
Sahu informed that the bus service across the state will be ramped up to pre-lockdown levels over a period of 10 days. Initially, only some of the buses will operate.
“Passengers safety will be given top priority with strict adherence to government’s COVID-19 guidelines. The buses will be sanitised frequently. And inside the bus, while wearing masks will be mandatory, proper care will be taken to ensure social distancing between passengers,” Sahu added.
Notably, a meeting was held between state transport minister Padmanabha Behera and the bus owners’ association where the body placed six demands before the minister. One of the demands was accepted by the government and as a result, three months’ tax on private buses has been waived.
Earlier, the state government had granted permission to the private bus owners to resume the service with 50 per cent capacity and double fare. But the bus owners chose to be off the road citing loss.
PNN