Goa Adds 50 Electric Buses to its Fleet Under FAME II Scheme

Olectra Electric buses flagged off by honorable Chief Minister of Goa, Mr Pramod Sawant, on Tuesday.

Goa has added 50 ‘Make in India’ electric buses from Kadamba Transport under the FAME II Scheme. Chief Minister of Goa, Dr. Pramod Sawant, waved off the ‘Make in India’ Electric buses (e-buses). In a first-of-its-kind move, Goans will be now able to travel in zero-emission and noiseless e-buses deployed by Olectra Greentech Limited, a leading Electric Bus Manufacturer in India.

According to a release by the e-bus manufacturer, Olectra stands as India’s leading electric bus manufacturer with the highest market share in this segment. Olectra has already deployed 320 + e-buses in various STUs in India. Further, the firm has orders for the deployment of 1,225 more Electric Buses in India.

Specifying about the e-bus fleet, the release noted that these 12-meter Air-Conditioned buses are of Monocoque chassis and have a seating capacity of 48+Driver with electronically controlled air suspension at front and rear, Disc Brakes with ABS at the front and back to ensure a comfortable & safety ride for the passengers.

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These buses are equipped with CCTV cameras to ensure the commuters’ safety, Emergency button, USB Sockets for mobile charging, GPS tracking, etc. Powered by lithium-ion batteries, buses can travel up to 200-250 km on a single charge based on traffic conditions. The time required for the complete charge is 4-5 hours.

Speaking of the deployment of the e-buses, Group Director, MEIL (Olectra Greentech), KV Pradeep stated, “Olectra is proud and thankful to Kadamba for giving the opportunity to operate its World-class electric buses in Goa. Our buses would now contribute to preserving the rich ecology of Goa. We are sure that, like other states, our 50 electric buses will be successful in the Goa state.”

“Our Electric buses have already proved its reliability and efficiency as it has been successfully deployed in Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Surat, Silvassa, Dehradun, and Kerala,” Pradeep added.

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Union minister Prakash Javadekar was also present at the launch of e-buses virtually, and he stated, “The launch of electric buses is an effort towards reducing carbon emissions in the country. These are zero-emission vehicles that are soundless and are good for the environment. We have installed more than 2,000 charging stations across India and in the next four years, the price of electric vehicles will further go down.”

“We endeavor to have many more of these vehicles and will also set up infrastructure, like charging stations, for them,” Javadekar added.

Speaking at the launch, Chief minister Pramod Sawant responded, “KTC has the potential to be a ‘swayampurna’ corporation. Goa has not been left out of the countrywide electric vehicle distribution. By 2030, maximum transport vehicles must come under EVs to control the pollution levels and reduce carbon emissions.”

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Recently this February, Nilesh Cabral, Minister of Power, Environment, New & Renewable Energy, Govt of Goa emphasized the importance of ushering in electric two-wheelers in Goa, as he highlighted new electric mobility (E-mobility) initiatives in the UT as a part of the larger Convergence initiative by the Government of India.

Not only this but the EV adoption in Goa has been pushed up earlier also as in January 2021, The CM of Goa, Dr. Pramod Sawant had inaugurated the first public Electric Vehicle (EV) charging unit, as part of the Green Goa Initiative. The EV charger has been installed by Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL).