Informing this Urban Affairs Minister Prestone Tynsong said: “The buses will be pressed into service very soon.” He said three of the five companies that responded to the bid — Tata, Mahindra and Leyland — have qualified for the technical bid. “We will now open the commercial bid and decide to place the formal order,” Tynsong added.
The buses — 100 mini buses of 35 seaters and 20 standard buses — will be pressed into service within three months under the comprehensive mobility plan of JNNURM, Tynsong said.
Similar buses under the scheme are already in States like Arunachal Pradesh. The state-of-the-art bus has a floor height of 900 mm against 1100 mm in normal buses with stairs adequately designed for easy entry. It has automatic hydraulic doors and four destination boards, two inside and two outside, for display of stations.
It has standing capacity while the seats are designed as per the AIS023 under the guidelines of Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD).