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| The only city bus terminal in Berhampur. Picture by Gopal Krishna Reddy |
Berhampur, Jan. 4: Five acres have been identified at Haldiapadar on the city outskirts to build a new bus stand.
“A high-level meeting has approved the site and we are in the process of selecting a consultant for the project,” Kishen Kumar, Ganjam collector and vice-chairman of the Berhampur Development Authority, said.
Bus stand at Haldiapadar is expected to tackle traffic congestion in the city. Long-route buses will not be allowed to enter the city and passengers can avail themselves of city or town buses. The development authority is optimistic about this project, he said.
There are two bus stands — Old and New — in Berhampur. Since January 1, the Odisha State Road Transport Company has ceased to operate from the Old Bus Stand, and now, taxis and autorickshaws are using the space. Company and the private buses are operating from New Bus Stand.
“We would use the New Bus Stand as the City Bus Terminus,” Kumar said.
“We are in the process of introducing the city bus service between Berhampur and Chhatrapur and Gopalpur before August. The state government has decided to procure 28 25-seater buses. However, the management will be in public-private partnership mode like that in Bhubaneswar and Puri,” he said.
The development authority is also undertaking two bus terminuses at Chhatrapur and Gopalpur, and a Mumbai-based company Crisil has been appointed as the transaction advisor. It has already done preliminary study, he said.
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