DTC faces loss of Rs 7.81 lakh on operation of Delhi-Lahore bus service

The DTC has incurred a loss of around Rs 7.81 lakh on the operation of the Delhi-Lahore bus service in the months of May and June this year, an RTI query has found. In May, 146 passengers traveled on the Delhi-Lahore bus while in June, 140 passengers used the service, the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) said in response to an RTI query by PTI.

According to the DTC, it has no plan to increase the number of buses on the Delhi-Lahore route so far. The fare of the air-conditioned bus service is Rs 2,400 for passenger aged 12 and above. A DTC official said that the fare is inclusive of complimentary breakfast, lunch and evening tea.

In 1999, the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had started the Delhi-Lahore Bus Service. According to official records, in the month of May, DTC's earning on its Delhi-Lahore bus service was Rs 377,340 against the expenditure of Rs 797,918, causing a loss of over Rs 4.2 lakh.

Similarly, in June, the state-run transport corporation spent around Rs 7.81 lakh on the operation of Delhi-Lahore bus while it earned only Rs 4.2 lakh from its international bus service, leading to a loss of Rs 3.61 lakh. The RTI reply also stated that in these two months - May and June, the DTC's earning on the operation of the Delhi-Lahore bus service was nearly Rs 7.97 lakh against the expenditure of Rs 15.79 lakh.

The thrice a week service has been posing a burden on DTC's already stretched finances, an official said. The DTC bus to Lahore is operated from the Ambedkar Stadium bus terminal near the Delhi Gate. The bus runs under a security cover.

This bus plies every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. It leaves for Lahore at 6 am. The bus has a seating capacity of 40 passengers. The Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) runs a bus to Delhi on every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. In the aftermath of the Pulwama attack, the bus service had been affected and the number of passengers using it had gone down.

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