Nagpur to Roll Out 150 New E-Buses Under PM Scheme

18 Jul 2025 CW Team

Municipal Commissioner Dr Abhijeet Chaudhari recently inspected one of the buses and issued firm instructions prioritising technical reliability, safety, and punctual service rollout. Each 9-metre AC bus features fast charging, hydraulic ramps for differently-abled passengers, 25 seats, six CCTV cameras, and four LED display panels.

To support the deployment, charging depots at Khapri and Koradi are being set up, with the Koradi depot ready and Khapri still under construction. Each site will accommodate 75 buses. The project is backed by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and includes infrastructure support from MSEDCL.

However, concerns remain over operational readiness. During inspection, Chaudhari flagged serious design flaws. The current hydraulic ramp mechanism reportedly takes 5–10 minutes to operate, posing a risk of delays. Moreover, the installation of the ramp has reduced seating capacity by four, bringing it down to just 25 seats.

The Commissioner has demanded that seating be increased and the step height lowered for better accessibility, particularly for senior citizens. He rejected the manufacturer’s proposal to address these issues post-delivery, asserting that no bus would be accepted until all necessary rectifications were completed.

The prototype is being tested on multiple city routes over a three-day trial run to evaluate performance under real conditions. Nagpur’s current public transport fleet includes over 400 buses on 129 routes, serving around 1.39 lakh passengers daily. Of these, 230 are electric. To further modernise operations, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation has submitted a proposal for an additional 240 air-conditioned electric buses.

Nagpur is gearing up to bolster India’s electric mobility drive with the planned induction of 150 new electric buses under the PM e-Bus Seva Yojana. While the complete fleet is yet to arrive, trial units from JBM Auto have already reached the city and are undergoing test runs on key routes.Municipal Commissioner Dr Abhijeet Chaudhari recently inspected one of the buses and issued firm instructions prioritising technical reliability, safety, and punctual service rollout. Each 9-metre AC bus features fast charging, hydraulic ramps for differently-abled passengers, 25 seats, six CCTV cameras, and four LED display panels.To support the deployment, charging depots at Khapri and Koradi are being set up, with the Koradi depot ready and Khapri still under construction. Each site will accommodate 75 buses. The project is backed by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and includes infrastructure support from MSEDCL.However, concerns remain over operational readiness. During inspection, Chaudhari flagged serious design flaws. The current hydraulic ramp mechanism reportedly takes 5–10 minutes to operate, posing a risk of delays. Moreover, the installation of the ramp has reduced seating capacity by four, bringing it down to just 25 seats.The Commissioner has demanded that seating be increased and the step height lowered for better accessibility, particularly for senior citizens. He rejected the manufacturer’s proposal to address these issues post-delivery, asserting that no bus would be accepted until all necessary rectifications were completed.The prototype is being tested on multiple city routes over a three-day trial run to evaluate performance under real conditions. Nagpur’s current public transport fleet includes over 400 buses on 129 routes, serving around 1.39 lakh passengers daily. Of these, 230 are electric. To further modernise operations, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation has submitted a proposal for an additional 240 air-conditioned electric buses.

Infrastructure Transport

13 Oct 2025

Tata, Airbus to Build India’s First Private Helicopter Line

In a landmark development for India’s aerospace sector, Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) and Airbus will establish the country’s first private-sector helicopter assembly line in Vemagal, Karnataka. The facility will manufacture the Airbus H125 and H125M, marking a significant milestone in India’s push for self-reliance in aviation and defence manufacturing. The new Final Assembly Line (FAL) will produce the H125, the world’s best-selling single-engine helicopter, known for its versatility and performance in extreme environments. The first ‘Made in India’ H125 is expected to ro..

Infrastructure Urban

13 Oct 2025

NeGD to Support Bharat Taxi in Building Cooperative Ride Platform

In a significant move for India’s digital and mobility transformation, the National e-Governance Division (NeGD) of the Digital India Corporation, under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), has entered into an advisory partnership with Sahakar Taxi Cooperative Limited, the company behind Bharat Taxi — a first-of-its-kind, cooperative-led national ride-hailing platform. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between NeGD and Sahakar Taxi to provide strategic advisory and technical support covering key areas such as platform integration, cybersecurity..

Technology

13 Oct 2025

MeitY Hosts Pre-Summit for India–AI Impact Summit 2026

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, hosted a series of Pre-Summit events for the upcoming India–AI Impact Summit 2026 at the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2025 in New Delhi. These sessions mark a key milestone ahead of the main summit, scheduled for 19–20 February 2026 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. Delivering the inaugural address, S. Krishnan, Secretary, MeitY, highlighted India’s innovative and frugal approach to AI development. “We have adopted innovative means by learning from others’ experiences to build projects and products that..