BEST has concept of a plan for 10000 buses by 2026, doesn’t know how

In 2024-25, the BEST planned to procure 2,000 electric buses for Rs 2,573 crore. So far, it has obtained around 200 such buses. File pic

The BEST undertaking has plans to scrap 510 of its old buses and replace them with electric ones costing R679 crore in total during the next financial year. Of the new vehicles, 273 will be single-decker and 237 midi buses. By March 31, 2026, BEST aims to have a 10,182-strong fleet of 3,337 self-owned buses and 6,845 leased.

However, there is no road map on how this will be achieved as the present administration lacks a concrete plan. The interim budget seems to be tabled just to complete technicalities, and the final budget will be presented alongside the BMC's 2025-26 budget.

The budget has declared a total cumulative liability of over Rs 9,286 crore, for both transport and electricity supply divisions of the BEST. In 2024-25, the undertaking had planned to procure 2,000 electric buses for Rs 2,573 crore but has been unable to make its mark. The self-owned bus fleet has been declining and has come down to 1,000 buses.

‘Wait for improved tech'

The BEST has 2,978 buses, of which 1,684 have been procured on a rent basis while the remaining is owned by the undertaking. In a memorandum of understanding signed by the trade union and the then-municipal commissioner in 2019, the undertaking was expected to maintain a fleet of 3,337 self-owned buses for which it sought R3,400 crore from the BMC.

The BEST has demanded R2,812 crore from the BMC. From 2019 to date, the civic body has given around Rs 8,592 crore to the BEST. For this financial year, the BMC made a provision of Rs 800 crore for the undertaking, out of which R600 crore has been handed out.

Transport expert Ashok Datar said the BEST must follow certain basic practices to come out of the red. "For the next two years, they should stop buying electric buses which cost R1.60 crore each as their performance is not satisfactory and they don't offer the desired mileage per charge. I believe better technology will make electric buses cheaper. In the meantime, why not buy more CNG buses, which are readily available at R55 lakh, a third of the price? We can also consider Eicher buses, the most popular among private operators, which are available at R40 lakh each," he suggested.

Delayed budget release

Straying from its decades-old practice, the BEST undertaking on Thursday was unable to release budget documents to the media on the day of the budget despite instructions from the BEST General Manager Anil Diggikar. Asked about the budget, Sudas Sawant, public relations department head of BEST, said he was unable to process it and released details a day later. Sources said the public relations department had been without a head for nearly a year or so.

Former opposition leader of BMC Ravi Raja, said, "The BEST budget is a public document. It should be published on the website when it is submitted to the BEST committee itself. The BMC put out its budget on its website, so why does the BEST want to hide its documents?"