Bhubaneswar: Electric buses will ply in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Puri soon, informed Science and Technology Minister Ashok Chandra Panda in the Assembly on Saturday.
“In order to promote clean and green energy, we will soon introduce electric buses within 100 km range in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Puri,” said Panda while responding to query of increasing air pollution in urban areas in the State.
Panda informed that a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has already been circulated among all stakeholders for the purpose.
According to experts, the electric buses require 0.8 unit electricity for covering a distance of one kilometre. The charging time for battery is around three to four hours.
Recently, the Union Government in its annual Budget announced reduction of GST on electric vehicles from 12% to 5% with an aim to become a global hub for electric vehicle manufacturing.
Also to make EVs affordable for consumers, it announced to provide additional income tax deduction of Rs 1.5 lakh on the interest paid on the loans taken to purchase EVs.
