Mumbai's BEST Buses: Lifeline or Financial Sinkhole?

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has allocated Rs 1,000 crore in its 2025-26 budget to support the financially-strapped Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking. This allocation is aimed at improving infrastructure, operations, and procurement, despite BMC's own substantial financial commitments.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has earmarked Rs 1,000 crore in its 2025-26 budget to bolster the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking, which faces significant financial hurdles.

BMC acknowledges its own pressing financial needs but emphasizes that supporting BEST is crucial, given its pivotal role in Mumbai's public transportation network. Serving over 3 million daily commuters, BEST operates a fleet of around 3,000 buses and is instrumental to the city's mobility.

The allocated funds will be directed towards infrastructure development, equipment purchases, and more. The initiative also aligns with state directives to finance the procurement of 2,000 electric buses, injecting much-needed sustainability into the network.

(With inputs from agencies.)