Delhi adds 300 electric buses, opens three new depots to expand green fleet
Delhi's public transport fleet has grown by 300 electric buses, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah flagging off the new vehicles on Tuesday. The fleet includes 195 nine-metre 'DEVi' buses and 105 regular 12-metre buses, all low-floor, air-conditioned, and equipped with features such as CCTV cameras, panic buttons, real-time GPS tracking, and passenger information systems.
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, who attended the event, stated that the buses are designed for safe, comfortable, and accessible travel, including for persons with disabilities. She highlighted that the zero-tailpipe-emission buses will help improve Delhi's air quality and reduce carbon emissions.
With the addition, Delhi now operates nearly 6,600 public transport buses, comprising 4,845 electric and 1,755 CNG buses. The Delhi government aims to expand the fleet to around 14,000 buses by 2028-29, Gupta added.
Alongside the buses, three new electric bus depots were inaugurated at Narela, Rithala, and Kohat Enclave. The Narela depots (Sector A-1 and A-4) can each park 250 DEVi buses. The Kohat Enclave depot accommodates 30 electric buses, and the Rithala depot can house 90. The Kohat Enclave depot also includes an administrative building, service pit, repair shop, washing pit, store, security room, and electrical substation.
An automated testing station at the Nand Nagri DTC depot was also inaugurated. It can conduct fitness tests for 52,000 heavy and light vehicles and 20,000 two-wheelers annually.
In a separate event, Shah laid the foundation stone for a high-security prison in Narela. The project will be funded with ₹100 crore from the Ministry of Home Affairs, with the Delhi government covering the remaining cost. The prison will have capacity for over 250 inmates and feature a radial-axial architectural design allowing central monitoring of cells. It will include AI-enabled CCTV surveillance, a command-and-control centre, automated locking systems, full-body scanners, X-ray baggage scanners, mobile signal jammers, video conferencing, and an in-house court complex. Officers will use body-worn cameras and biometric access control, and each cell will have an independent toilet and bathing facility.
