TGSRTC to operate 2,243 special buses for Shivaratri pilgrims

The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) on Tuesday announced that it will press into service 2,243 special buses to ferry passengers to Shaiva Kshetras in view of Shivaratri on February 15.

The buses will facilitate the travel of passengers to 43 Shaiva Kshetras across Telangana. The special buses will run for two days, from February 14 to 16, the TGSRTC stated

Of the total, 781 special buses will be operated to Srisailam, 416 to Vemulawada, 249 to Edupaya, 326 to Keesaragutta, 127 to Vela, 71 to Kaleshwaram, and 273 to Komuravelli, Alampur, Umamaheswaram, Palakurthi, Ramappa and other temples.

Passengers travelling from the city can take special buses to Srisailam from Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station, Jubilee Bus Statiobn, CBS, IS Sadan, KPHB and BHEL. The transport body stated that arrangements have been made for the convenience of passengers such as providing shade, seating arrangements, drinking water and public address systems at several locations.

The State-run transport service clarified the per an existing government order, ticket fares for special services have been revised by up to 1.5 times. Meanwhile, fares for regular services will remain unchanged. The revised fares will apply only to special buses operating between February 14 and 16, and for Edupalya between February 15 and 17. Display boards will be installed on special services for clarity of passengers.

The corporation said that its vice-chairman and managing director Y. Nagi Reddy had reviewed the arrangements and directed officials to ensure smooth operations. This year, 208 additional buses will be operated compared to last Shivaratri, with field officials authorised to deploy more services depending on demand.

The free bus travel facility for women will remain in force on Maha Shivaratri special services in Palle Velugu, Express, City Ordinary and Metro Express categories, with zero tickets to be issued. Advance reservations for special buses from Hyderabad to Srisailam are available on www.tgsrtcbus.in.