While the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) is generating the highest revenue in a day on the one hand, the organisation is struggling with the charging of its electric-buses (e-buses) at various electric depots (e-depots) on the other.
Earlier this year in August, chief minister Eknath Shinde inaugurated the Pune railway station e-depot even as 20 more e-buses were added to the PMPML fleet. But the organisation does not have adequate infrastructure to charge the e-buses due to which a large number of these buses are currently off-the-roads.
Out of the total 500 e-buses under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) 2 project of the central government, 150 e-buses are coming to the PMPML in a phase-wise manner and will be taken on a gross cost contract basis for a 12 years’ contract. While the remaining 350 e-buses will be taken by both the Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal corporations (PMC and PCMC, respectively) on a similar gross cost contract basis. While there are around 400 e-buses in the fleet currently, with 250 more to be added, these e-buses have been distributed across various bus depots including Bhekrainagar, Wagholi, Nigdi, Pune railway station, Baner and Bhosari.
Whereas these buses do not have the adequate electricity or infrastructure for charging purposes due to which passengers are unable to take the benefit of these buses despite there being a large number of them, with more to come in future. Presently, over 100 such e-buses across Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad are stationary and not being used in the daily fleet-to-passenger service. “There are some issues regarding the charging facilities and infrastructure of the e-buses but we are working on them and soon, a majority of the e-buses will hit the roads. Our officials are in continuous talks with the MSEDCL and wherever there is a shortage or any issue regarding the power supply, it is being solved,” said PMPML joint managing director Pradnya Pawar.
{{/usCountry}}Whereas these buses do not have the adequate electricity or infrastructure for charging purposes due to which passengers are unable to take the benefit of these buses despite there being a large number of them, with more to come in future. Presently, over 100 such e-buses across Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad are stationary and not being used in the daily fleet-to-passenger service. “There are some issues regarding the charging facilities and infrastructure of the e-buses but we are working on them and soon, a majority of the e-buses will hit the roads. Our officials are in continuous talks with the MSEDCL and wherever there is a shortage or any issue regarding the power supply, it is being solved,” said PMPML joint managing director Pradnya Pawar.
{{/usCountry}}Furthermore, most of these e-bus depots are coming up on the outskirts of the city where a large number of residential housing societies have also come up in the last few years. Due to this, the residents too are complaining about power cuts and electricity being supplied to e-buses rather than the common public. There is a demand to first provide electricity to the people and then to the e-depots for the e-buses.
Whereas the MSEDCL has refuted all allegations levelled by the PMPML. Bharat Pawar, deputy chief public relations officer, MSEDCL Pune Regional Office, said, “The officials of the PMPML have given the wrong information about MSEDCL that we are not providing the required supply to the e-bus charging stations. The MSEDCL has given approval to the PMPML about providing electricity supply to all its e-depots however the infra work on the part of the PMPML is pending which is causing the delay in releasing power supply. There are various infrastructure works which are necessary to be carried out to give continuous power supply but as they have not been carried out, we are unable to provide the supply.”