Government to soon announce battery-powered buses for Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra

NEW DELHI: The government will soon introduce electric buses in Delhi, Karnataka and Maharashtra under a pilot project aimed at checking the rising levels of pollution.

The road transport and highways ministry will givebattery-powered buses to the transport corporations of the three states, a senior government official said on Friday, adding that the project has been envisaged by Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari.

"It's our ministry's endeavour to promote clean fuel in India," the official said. "Auto companies will be encouraged to manufacture lithium-ion battery buses. It will significantly cut down the transportation cost."

The official said if the pilot run is successful, the government may give incentives under the ‘Make in India’ initiative to bus manufacturers for producing hybrid electric buses.

The lithium-ion batteries for the pilot project have been manufactured by Pune-based auto technology company KPIT. The cost per bus is expected to be Rs 60 lakh. These electric buses will be able to run 150 km when fully charged.

Gadkari will gift two such buses to Parliament on Monday.