Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday launched the LAccMI bus service in five more districts of the state. He launched the affordable transport facility in Sonepur, Cuttack, Jharsuguda, Kandhamal and Sambalpur districts through video conferencing.
All the 30 districts of the state are likely to be covered under the ‘Location Accessible Multi-modal Initiative’ (LAccMI) scheme, which aims at establishing a seamless public transport network right from Gram Panchayat (GP) level, official sources said.
The Chief Minister virtually flagged off as many as 205 new buses which will connect at least 700 Gram Panchayats with the corresponding block headquarters. It will benefit more than 44 lakh people in the five districts.
The LAccMI buses will facilitate local conveyance in the rural suburbs of the districts with an optimum fare of Rs 5 per passenger.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that the people can do their daily work conveniently and at low cost by using affordable bus services. The bus will ease our journey of life, and bring prosperity to our homes.
The CM launched 58 buses in 102 panchayats of Sonepur district where 5.73 lakh people will be benefited, while 18.37 lakh people in 261 panchayats will get benefit from 48 buses in Cuttack district. Jharsuguda district got 16 buses and 5.62 lakh people in 76 panchayats were benefited.
Similarly, 7.03 lakh people of 164 panchayats were benefited from 52 buses under the scheme in Kandhamal district, while 31 buses were launched in Sambalpur to provide services to around 7.28 lakh people of 97 panchayats.
More than 1000 buses will run across the state under the scheme, launched under the 5T initiative. Mission Shakti members have been given the responsibility of running the vehicles.
The Chief Minister further said that LAccMI Bus will play an important role in strengthening the rural economy. “Our aim is to make Panchayat the center of development. Our aim is to strengthen the economy of the village,” he said.
He said that Sri Jagannath Express bus service has been started for the darshan of Lord Jagannath and to experience the Parikrama Project.
Stating that Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha program is continuing for the transformation of the village, the Chief Minister wished everyone’s cooperation to build a new Odisha.
Highlighting theLAccMI Bus service, the Chief Minister said that the Bus will strengthen social and economic life of rural people. The bus will transport students to school and college. It can connect farmers to markets.
