Bhubaneswar, March 16: The Orissa State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC) today inked an MoU with a private company to develop a modern bus terminal at Baramunda.

The construction work of the terminal will begin in six months and is likely to be completed in two years.

State commerce and transport minister Sanjeeb Sahu said the terminal would be developed under public–private partnership (PPP) mode.

“Out of the three companies, the OSRTC has selected ARSS Infrastructure Projects Limited for this purpose. The company has paid license fee of Rs 56 crore to take up the work. If it fails to execute the work as per clause, the entire MoU will be cancelled,” said Sahu.

According to the MoU, the modern bus terminal would come up on 14.43 acres. “While 60 per cent of the land will be used for the bus terminal, the other 40 per cent will be used for commercial purposes,” Sahu said. The MoU said the company would build an air-conditioned waiting hall, retiring areas for transporters, e-ticketing system, kiosks, food courts, cloak rooms, adequate boarding, alighting and idle parking bays. After completing the terminal, the company would maintain it for nearly 15 years and then hand it over to OSRTC.

On the commercial front, the company would build malls, multiplexes, corporate offices, budget, hotels and residential complexes. Significantly, the 40 per cent land used for commercial purposes will remain with the company for 90 years.

However, the commercial lease agreement has not gone down well with many people. They alleged that six acres of land were being given to the private parties at a throwaway price. But Sahu claimed the bidding process was done in a transparent manner and a high-power panel chaired by the chief minister selected the company. “ARSS chief Subas Agarwal and vice-president Malay Patanik said the company would spend nearly Rs 230 crore for the new terminal.

Around 1,500 buses will operate simultaneously from the project site.