Odisha to launch bus service connecting grampanchayats with state Capital

The Odisha state Cabinet has decided to launch the ₹3,178 crore project on Gandhi Jayanti with 1,000 buses

On this Gandhi Jayanti on October 2, the Odisha government would launch a bus service that would connect each of the 6,794 grampanchayats in the state to their block and district headquarters towns and state Capital Bhubaneswar.

The project isnamed Location Accessible Multimodal Initiative. (Representative Image)

The state Cabinet, which met on Friday, said the ₹3,178 crore project would run for next 10 years to facilitate assured and affordable transportation for people across the state.

The project, named Location Accessible Multimodal Initiative(LAccMI), would see 1,000 Odisha State Road Transport Corporation buses running from grampanchayats to blocks, blocks to district headquarters and district headquarters to state capital. The buses connecting district headquarters to state capital would be named Jagannath Express while those connecting district headquarter towns to panchayats would be called LAccMI Express.

People familiar with the matter said that though roads in Odisha are good, connectivity has been a major issue in the state for long. Most of the public transport in rural areas of the state is provided by private bus companies, which operate around 500 buses. The state-run Odisha State Road Transport Corporation under the Transport and Commerce department runs 460 buses, but mostly between district headquarter towns.

To bridge last mile connectivity, the state government in 2014 had started the Biju Gaon Gadi Yojana with 561 small buses, but most of the buses fell into disuse during Covid-19 pandemic, leading to the failure of the scheme. The Biju Gaon Gadi Yojana would now be subsumed under the scheme.

The urban transport in select cities of the state, including Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, has been streamlined with introduction of Mo Bus that is run by a special purpose vehicle. Last year, the Mo Bus service was among the 10 global initiates honoured with a prestigious United Nations award for efforts in helping the world recover better from Covid-19.

Under LAccMI Scheme, women would be given preference for joining the workforce. The Mission Shakti Self Help Group would be engaged in various operation & maintenance related activities.

The Cabinet also decided to extend the helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) for transportation of traumatic patients to ensure emergency transportation of road accident victims, who need trauma care within the golden hour.