Electric buses hit Palampur roads for first time, operations begin with 10 buses

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Palampur,August 10

Himachal Pradesh’s electric bus rollout reached Palampur on Monday with the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) starting operations with 10 buses in the first phase, Deputy Chief Minister and Transport Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said.

Agnihotri said the first electric bus from Palampur was flagged off for Mata Chamunda Temple. He said the state had rolled out the first lot of 300 electric buses, and operations were being launched in areas with charging facilities.

He said a charging station would soon be established in Jaisinghpur, while facilities were already available in Dharamshala, Nagrota, Jasur, Pathankot and Dehra.

An electric bus can travel around 180 km on a single charge, Agnihotri said, adding that trials on the Dharamshala-Pathankot and Una-Chandigarh routes had also been successful.

He said the government was exploring the possibility of operating electric buses on routes connecting hospitals, major cities and prominent religious destinations.

Agnihotri said HRTC was a welfare institution and not a commercial organization. For the past 52 years, the corporation has provided transport services to people across the state, with its primary objective of ensuring better public transport facilities.

On political issues, Agnihotri said politics should focus on development, welfare and serving the poor. He said the Congress government did not believe in character assassination or politics of conspiracy.

The Deputy Chief Minister said the state government was focusing on the overall development of Kangra district, including projects related to airport expansion, tourism, religious sites such as Chamunda and Kangra, a milk plant, Fina Singh Dam, Central University and other development initiatives.