Sindh govt rolls out intra- and inter-city Peoples Bus Scheme

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Wednesday said that bus projects are need of the hour as traffic problems in Karachi are becoming serious day by day and existing public transport facilities are not enough to keep pace with the rising population.

Addressing the signing ceremony of financing agreement between Transport and Mass Transit Department and Sindh Modaraba Limited for launching intra and inter-city bus projects, CM Sindh said that he was quite satisfied with the workable approach to solve the transport problem in the city.

The signing of finance agreement for peoples bus projects was made by Secretary Transport Saeed Awan and CEO Sindh Modaraba Naeem Farooqui.

CM Sindh said that the present transportation system operating along the routes is insufficient to meet the growing demand of travellers, and it is necessary to realise the acute shortage of transport and dilapidated condition of the fleet.

He added that the Sindh government aims at rolling out an incentive through Sindh Modaraba Limited to facilitate commuters in different parts of interior Sindh. This includes sharing the total cost of the vehicle in equity ratio of 70:30 – the 70 percent financing shall be made through SML, while the transporter shall pay 15 percent of the vehicle cost and the other 15 percent shall be borne by the provincial government as interest-free loan.

Speaking on the occasion, Transport Minister Syed Nasir Shah said that intra-city bus scheme aims to strengthen transport facilities for the people of Karachi and it would support the mass transit system like Bus Rapid Transfer corridors and Karachi Circular Railway.

The minister said that the Sindh Transport and Mass Transit Department in collaboration with Sindh Modaraba Limited has launched the scheme to facilitate the transporters with certain incentives.

Talking about the incentives, he said that Sindh Modaraba Limited shall charge a mark-up rate of KIBOR plus 3.50 percent, while the transporters shall bear the burden of flat 5 percent mark-up. The difference shall be borne by the provincial government and the loan shall be for a maximum of five years.

He said that the transporters would pay 15 percent of the upfront cost of vehicles while another 15 percent would be borne by the Sindh government as interest-free loan, repayable within a year of the completion of the loan due to Sindh Modaraba Limited.

The minister said that the Sindh government would bear the insurance cost of the vehicle, which would be insured through the Sindh Insurance Limited and would not be more than five percent of the value of the vehicle.

It may be noted that the advertisement of the scheme was published on September 13, 2017 wherein the request of proposals was made available from October 10, 2017 on the official website of Sindh Modaraba Limited and the office of Sindh Mass Transit Authority.

The minister said that through this schemes, the provincial government would fulfill its commitment toy providing qualitative, comfortable and affordable transport facilities.