THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The next tender for the Pradhan Mantri E-Bus Seva scheme is in February. Kerala will not lose the agreed 950 e-buses if the procedures are followed and the central government is informed before that.
150 buses each for Kochi and Kozhikode cities, 100 each for Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Thrissur, Malappuram and Kannur cities and 50 each for Cherthala, Kayamkulam and Kottayam cities can be made available. Karnataka, which participated in the first tender, demanded 795 buses. Central e-buses will run in 11 cities. Those cities are Mysore, Mangaluru, Davangere, Shivamogga, Tumakuru, Belagavi, Hubballi, Dharwad, Kalaburagi, Ballari and Vijayapura.
Politics in bus as well
By the time the project is approved and the bus is allowed, it will be April. It is reported that Kerala did not show interest in the bus because it is assumed that the BJP will take advantage of this in the general election. BJP had already started campaigning through social media highlighting the allocation of 100 buses to Thrissur. Congress-ruled Karnataka approached the Center for the bus regardless of politics.
States that got the central government bus