Karnataka is getting aggressive with its plans to improve the transport system in the major cities while making it more commuter-friendly through many of its initiatives..
While it launched the common mobility card for commuters travelling by city bus services in Bangalore this week, in Mysore it plans to have a separate transport corporation modelled on the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) which will remain a division of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC).
Karnataka, hence, becomes the first state to have the Common Mobility Card for commuters travelling by city bus services. The facility, to be introduced in 1,000 buses would later be extended to the Metro rail travel and could be used for payment of parking fee at parking lots, transport and home minister R Ashok told reporters here. The Centre has chosen Karnataka for introducing the card by sharing 35 per cent of the cost of the scheme, he said.
The Centre, which is sharing the cost of implementing the plan with the state governments, wants the CMC to be used across any public transportation system like buses, trains, metros, and even taxis and autorickshaws. The project also aims to use the cards for toll collection on highways, retail payments, utility payments and vehicle parking slots.
The Bangalore project is being implemented at a cost of around Rs.16 crore of which the state will meet 65 percent and the rest will be borne by the central government. Ashok said around 100 re-charge centres would be established across Bangalore to enable commuters to re-charge their cards.
The Centre had earlier mooted the idea of a Common Mobility Card to overcome the hurdle in promoting the use of public transport. The card would spare commuters the problems faced such as buying ticket for every travel and tendering of exact amount for the ticket, he said. At least 100 re-charge centres would be established in the city, enabling commuters to re-charge their cards. The Centre is planning to extend the cards across the country after monitoring its success in Karnataka, which boasts of an electronic driving test track, also the first of its kind in the country to test the driving skills of those applying for driving licence.
The state government is all set to reintroduce the 24-hour beat system for police from the next year under which a team of police keep surveillance in a patrol vehicle. Some 1,035 Assistant sub-Inspectors of police and 4,012 police constables were being recruited to operationalise the beat system, that was done away with 15 years ago, Ashok said. Eight more police training schools would be set up, taking their number to 14 in the state and the police personnel would be imparted training under a revised syllabus, he said.
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Meanwhile, the transport department is setting up a transport corporation for Mysore city. The transport corporation will be modelled on the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and will remain a division of the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC).
“Mysore is the second largest city after Bangalore in the state. It is also the only city in the state to receive funds for modernisation of the urban infrastructure from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). It is mandatory to set up an independent transport body for Mysore to get the funds under the JNNURM,” R Ashok, minister for transport and home, said.
He told reporters here, 300 buses are being operated in Mysore and in the days to come the fleet size will be increased.
The government is also in the process of creating a similar transport corporation for Mangalore city, he said.
Under the JNNURM, the state government has received funds to the tune of Rs 450 crore for various projects in Bangalore and Mysore cities. Mysore has got Rs 90 crore for a modern bus stand, he added.
Ashok said the transport department would soon start city bus services in cities like Tumkur and Mandya. The KSRTC has been directed to purchase 50 new buses for the purpose, he said.
In order to decongest the central bus stand in the Majestic area in Bangalore, the transport department would build a satellite bus terminus in Peenya. “The department is in possession of land required for the bus stand. The tenders will be floated soon for the purpose,” he said.
The state government took a decision in this regard at a meeting on Monday. Among other issues discussed at the meeting, the government has decided to rename the satellite bus stands at Kengeri and Shanti Nagar after Kengal Hanumanthaiah, the first chief minister of Karnataka, and Atal Behari Vajpayee, former prime minister.
The KSRTC, which had accumulated losses of Rs 500 crore, has wiped out its losses and returned to black during the present fiscal, he said.
Ashok said 7.20 acres of land at Majestic would be transferred to Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL) for building the underground station. The transport department owns 40 acres land at Majestic. Another 12.20 acres would be leased out to BMRCL temporarily.