Bhubaneswar, July 27: The civic body has joined hands with the Odisha State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC) to keep the Baramunda bus terminus clean.

The move of the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation came in the wake of dengue outbreak at the poorly-maintained Jagatpur Industrial Estate in Cuttack. Taking a lesson from Cuttack, the Bhubaneswar civic body has already launched a sanitation drive at Mancheswar Industrial Estate here to keep dengue at bay.

Dipti Rani Sahoo, the zonal deputy commissioner of the civic body, told The Telegraph today that they would take the sanitation drive to Baramunda bus stand after Mancheswar.

The OSRTC will construct a drain inside the terminus to prevent waterlogging, while the BMC will provide dustbins.

Poor sanitation standards of the bus terminus have always been a major concern for the civic body. There are some 132 roadside shops and restaurants around the bus terminus. This leaves the busy public facility waterlogged with leftover food, polythene carry bags and used water bottles scattered across the roads.

Thousands of passengers commute to various parts of the state from Baramunda every day with more than 500 buses operating from there on a daily basis.

"The bus stand and the railway station are the two dirtiest areas of the city. The civic body should make elaborate plans to maintain cleanliness in these areas," said Prayag Mishra, a commuter who regularly uses the bus terminus.

Small dustbins will also be put inside private and government buses to streamline garbage collection. After the buses reach the terminus, the sanitary staff will clear the garbage bins placed in the buses.

"Bus owners have accepted our idea of installing dustbins in buses," said Sahoo.

The OSRTC will also ban washing and cleaning of buses and other vehicles inside the terminus. OSRTC general manager S.K. Patel said that an alternative site would be developed for the purpose. "We will work hand-in-hand with the civic body to keep Baramunda bus terminus clean," Patel said.