Bus services have not been made available to 44 gram panchayats in the State due to lack of road communications, informed Transport Minister Padmanabha Behera in the State Assembly on Thursday.
In response to a question of BJP MLA Mohan Charan, the Minister said that 6,758 out of total 6,802 GPs are now availing bus services. There are 32 buses running per one lakh population in Odisha against 22 buses running at national level as per the Road Transport Year Book 2017, published by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, he said.
The Minister further informed that a total of 10,421 private and 414 Government buses now. He said 300 more buses would be purchases in the next three years for which Rs 80 crore has been allocated this year. The Government would consider running more private buses if proposals received in coming days, he said.