Delhi LG, transport minister lay foundation stone of multi-level electric bus depot in South Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI) Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena and Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot laid the foundation stone of a multi-level electric bus depot in the Vasant Vihar area here on Tuesday.

Touted as the country’s largest bus depot, officials said the facility would come up on a 7.6 lakh square feet area and cost an estimated Rs 409 crore.

Addressing a press conference after the foundation stone-laying ceremony, Gahlot said, “This bus depot will serve as India’s largest and first electric bus-parking facility. It will be seen as a milestone in the future.”

He added that the depot will have a dedicated space for parking 220 cars and 200 two-wheelers.

The facility will be built by the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) and is expected to be completed in the next two years.

“The parking will accommodate 434 buses and will be equipped with EV charging stations, rooftop solar panels and 16 maintenance pits,” Gahlot said.

“This depot will be a zero-discharge facility, which means it will not generate any waste as a water treatment plant will be installed at the parking that will help treat the waste water that can be used for cleaning the buses,” he added.

The minister said solar panels with a capacity of 112 MW will be installed on the roof to meet the electricity requirements of the parking, making the project environment-friendly and efficient.

The transport department plans to build similar projects in the Harinagar and Shadipur areas of the city in the future, Gahlot said.

He added that the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) is also planning to construct residential colonies at Harinagar and Shadipur for private sale, which will generate revenue to the tune of Rs 800 crore to Rs 1,000 crore.

Saxena lauded the initiative and congratulated the transport minister.

“This is a great initiative. Delhi is our national capital, so everything here should be top-notch. I would like to congratulate Kailash Gahlot for coming up with the initiative,” he said.

The LG was the chief guest at the ceremony while Gahlot was the guest of honour.