STATE TRANSPORT Minister and Minister in charge for the district Himmat Kothari on Friday inaugurated Maruti Omni car contractual service as a public transport system within Indore municipal limits.
Eleven LPG-run seven-seater Omnis rolled out in the City and carried commuters free of charge on the inaugural run today. The vehicles will shift to using CNG fuel with the availability of gas in a year.
The maximum Omni fare will not exceed Rs 7 though the modalities have yet to be made final. Addressing the inaugural function, Kothari said the new contractual service would not only reduce pollution in the City but save money spent on petrol as the crores of rupees paid every year in foreign exchange to buy it.
He said though Transport Department was closing down the MPRTC, it is thinking of providing better public transport service under an umbrella organisation. The Minister emphasised on decent behaviour by Omni operators with commuters. In his address, Indore City Transport Services Limited (ICTSL) Executive Director and District Collector Vivek Aggarwal stressed the need for change in the mindset of tempo operators, who have been granted Omni permits, stating that the new system would collapse if they continue to compete among themselves.
Offering ICTSL as an umbrella to run the contractual service, he said the company would ensure that they earn well. “It has to be a multi-model arrangement which caters to specific clientele and therefore there is no clash of interest or earnings,” he remarked, adding that there was no compulsion on any operator to joint ICTSL.
{{/usCountry}}Offering ICTSL as an umbrella to run the contractual service, he said the company would ensure that they earn well. “It has to be a multi-model arrangement which caters to specific clientele and therefore there is no clash of interest or earnings,” he remarked, adding that there was no compulsion on any operator to joint ICTSL.
{{/usCountry}}He stated that Omnis could either operate as dial-a-cab system that offers 24-hour service or as pre-paid taxis. Deputy Transport Commissioner Upendra Jain expressed hope that the new public transport system would prove to be another milestone after City buses. He said all the 550 Omnis would be on roads within four months.
Others, who spoke included MLAs Ashwin Joshi and Laxman Singh Gaud and Mayor Dr Uma Shashi Sharma. Indore Development Authority Chairman Madhu Verma presided over the function, which was attended by Principal Secretary, Transport, M K Roy, Superintendent of Police Anshuman Yadav, MLAs Usha Thakur, Mahendra Hardia and Manoj Patel.
Get vehicle info through e-service
DEPUTY TRANSPORT Commissioner Upendra Jain said the state Transport Department has become fully computerised this week making it one of the most advanced transport departments in the country.
Talking to newspersons here, Jain said the Department has introduced e-service where a purchaser buying new or old vehicle can have access to complete information about the vehicle through SMS format that could be accessed by dialing 98270-20002 or on the website –
On providing registration number, chasis number or the engine number of the vehicle to be purchased, the purchaser would get details about its hypothecation status, name of the owner, model and year of manufacture.
“This is to prevent purchaser from any fraud that often leads him to buy the wrong vehicle,” Jain said.