RTC to phase out polluting buses

HYDERABAD: Commuters in the city are demanding scrapping of the old buses belonging to the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) as they cause visible pollution while on their rounds.
According to TSRTC officials and municipal administration and urban development minister K T Rama Rao, these old-model buses are being removed from the fleet in a phased manner.
Sridhar Anchuri, deputy chief traffic manager of TSRTC, said that it is the old Pushpak buses that are currently on their way out.As many as 15 Pushpak' buses have been phased out within Hyderabad limits in the past six months to bring down pollution.
"The old-model Pushpak vehicles were the ones seen emitting pollutants. This is due to a problem with the vehicle's injector. In Hyderabad, there are 80 Pushpak buses. While 15 buses have been scrapped in the past six months, we are waiting for sanctions to remove 30 more such buses this month," said Anchuri.
At the recent Mana Nagaram programme in Kukatpally, KT Rama Rao had said that the government will purchase 500 electric buses to address the pollution problem in the city. "The GHMC has already pressed electric vehicles into service for garbage collection. The traditional diesel buses would be phased out over a period of time," said Rao.
While responding to citizens' appeals on social media about pollution being caused by TSRTC buses, the corporation on its official Twitter handle @TSRTCHQ assured that 40 electric buses will be pressed into service in Hyderabad city limits in the next three months.