The Hindu : New Delhi News : Delhi-U.P. pact to improve public transportation

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Tuesday, Jun 03, 2008
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Delhi-U.P. pact to improve public transportation

Staff Reporter

‘DTC would now operate up to 604 trips daily into U.P. beyond NCR’
‘U.P. buses on the other hand would operate 2,678 trips daily into Delhi’

NEW DELHI: An inter-State transport agreement between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh was signed by the Transport Secretaries of the two States on Monday paving the way for free movement of commercial vehicles and improved public transportation in the National Capital Region.

The agreement was signed by R. K. Varma on behalf of Delhi and D. D. Varma on behalf of UP in the presence of Delhi Transport Minister Haroon Yusuf, his UP counterpart Ram Achal Rajbhar, Environmental Pollution Prevention and Control Authority chairman Bhure Lal, and Authority member Sunita Narain.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Yusuf observed that the “historic agreement” would result in better connectivity between Delhi and the adjoining districts of Uttar Pradesh falling in the National Capital Region.

The Transport Minister said the DTC would now operate up to 604 trips daily into UP beyond NCR for which UP would countersign 369 permits of the DTC. The Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) on the other hand would operate 2,678 trips daily into Delhi of its buses originating from beyond the NCR. For this, Delhi would countersign 1,845 permits of UPSRTC. Return journeys would also count as a trip, he added.

Mr. Yusuf said Delhi would operate its buses on inter-State stage carriages covering up to 145,000 km inside UP daily, of which 45,000 km will be in the U.P. portion of NCR.

UP buses would now operate up to 40,000 km in Delhi. The UPSRTC buses coming to Delhi from areas in UP beyond NCR would terminate at the Inter-State Bus Terminals.

The DTC would operate 1,498 trips into NCR falling in UP. For this UP would countersign 302 permits of the DTC. The UPSRTC would operate 1,263 trips into Delhi from NCR in UP. For this, Delhi would countersign 575 permits of UPSRTC. At a practical level, this pact would allow UP buses to travel up to Delhi airport via Nehru Place and Vasant Vihar, Delhi airport via Badarpur and Mehrauli, Central Secretariat via Ashram and CGO Complex, New Delhi railway station via Pragati Maidan and Shivaji Stadium, ISBT (Kashmere Gate) via Shahdara and Shakarpur, ISBT (Kashmere Gate) via Anand Vihar and Bhajanpura, and Noida to Safdarjung Terminus via Sarai Kale Khan, Ashram and AIIMS.

Mr. Yusuf said the existing 53 permits of UP and 34 permits of Delhi would be part of the draft agreement. However, the present DTC and Delhi private stage carriage operation in Noida and Greater Noida would continue to be an extension of city operation by Delhi’s buses and would not count towards trips or kilometres.

The Minister informed that the last such agreement was inked in 1985 and unilaterally revoked by the UP Government in 2000. Since then inter-State movement of commercial vehicles of the two States in each other’s territory had been carried out on the basis of informal dialogue between the two governments.

A far-reaching agreement

Our Special Correspondent in Lucknow adds: The new agreement signed in Noida on Monday would make bus travel from Noida and Greater Noida in UP to important destinations in Delhi easy.

Passengers can now afford to travel directly from Noida/Greater Noida to New Delhi and Old Delhi railway stations, All-India Institute of Medical Sciences, airport, C.G.O Complex, Nehru Place and Shahdara on UPSRTC buses.

In addition, contract carriages – auto-rickshaws and taxis – would be allowed to render passenger services in the NCR. The agreement assumes significance in the light of the recent controversy over bus operations between the UP and Delhi governments. The dispute, which resulted in the bus transport coming to a standstill, caused immense problems to tens of thousands of passengers.

As a follow-up measure, the UP Transport Minister flagged off a Noida-to-Agra-via-Delhi air-conditioned luxury bus service from Noida bus station. The Kinglong/Volvo buses have been named “Swarn Shatabdi.

These buses have an engine capacity of 300 horse power.

In the first phase, two buses would be pressed into service. Passengers would have to pay Rs.331 from Noida to Agra, Rs.233 from Noida to Mathura, Rs.290 from Delhi to Agra, and Rs.169 from Delhi to Mathura. The cost of the ticket from Noida to Delhi has been fixed at Rs.35.

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