A waterlogged patch at the Kendrapara bus depot. Telegraph picture

Kendrapara, Oct. 8: The sprawling bus stoppage of the district headquarters town is in a bad shape, allegedly because of the civic body’s apathy.

Bereft of basic facility and infrastructure, the bus depot also lacks maintenance.

Though funds are not a constraint for giving it a facelift, it is the mindset of the authorities that has apparently compounded the problems here. The urban development department has sanctioned Rs 50 lakh for the bus depot’s renovation. But, it is yet to be spent.

More than 5,000 people use the bus depot everyday, which is dotted by large craters. The waterlogged premises of the depot force commuters to do a balancing act while boarding and alighting from the buses with luggage.

The bus depot’s rest room and washroom are also not maintained properly.

“Though the depot is under the management of the Kendrapara Municipality, it has done nothing to maintain or renovate the facilities here. Bus owners pay parking fees to the civic body every time a bus makes its way to the depot. But, the authorities have not provided us with basic amenities such as a rest shed, provisions for drinking water and clean toilets,” said the president of Kendrapara Private Bus Owners’ Association, Rebati Raman Das.

Municipality chairman Dhirendra Sahu said: “We have drawn up a plan to renovate the bus depot. There has been a delay in implementation of the project because of technicalities in the tender-bidding process. We hope to start work shortly.”