CM inaugurates online booking facility in HRTC buses

Shimla, Jun 15 (UNI) Himachal Pradesh today became the second state in the country, after Karnataka, to provide 3-D online booking facility in its corporation buses.

''The online facility, developed by the Society of IT and e-Governance, is available on mastercards and visa,'' Chief Minister Virhadra Singh said after inaugurating the new portal for HRTC booking here.

He said the 3-D secure interface reduces the possibility of credit card frauds with master and visa cards, besides providing commuters the facility to choose their seats in a user friendly and secure interface.

Passengers can now book seats onwww.sugamhimachal.org./hrtctickets without any extra payment as had been the case earlier, he said.

Mr Singh lauded the efforts of the IT Department and the HRTC for providing online booking facility and said his government was committed to provide comfortable means of transport to the public.

Referring to the increase in the prices of diesel and petrol during the last few years, he said despite rise in their prices his government had not increased bus fares April nine, 2003.

He said the corporation buses were providing free traveling facilities to school children, disadvantaged sections of the society and journalists.

The HRTC was rendering a yeoman's service in providing transport facilities to the people of the state in absence of railways, aircrafts and other modes, he said.

The Chief Minister said efforts were on to computerize all government departments functioning to bring about efficiency, transparency and responsiveness.

State Tourism and Transport Minister G S Bali, who was also present on the occasion, said the online facility would initially be available for Volvo buses only to begin and would be extended to semi and general buses.

He said the HRTC had increased its revenue during the last four years to Rs 76 crore and minimized the accident rate in the state.

Volvo buses had earned the corporation a profit of Rs 3.27 crore, following which semi-deluxe bus services had also been introduced on many popular routes, he said.

UNI