Patna: As Holi approaches, buses operating between Delhi and Bihar are running nearly full, with 94% of seats occupied on the first day of special services. The extra buses have been introduced by the Bihar State Road Transport Corporation to manage the festive rush and provide relief to passengers travelling home. The service connects Bihar with Delhi, Haryana, Jharkhand and West Bengal during the busy season.
Bihar’s transport minister, Shravan Kumar, said that around 8,000 passengers travelled between 23 and 25 February. During these three days, the government provided more than Rs 52,22,000 as seat subsidy. The subsidy aims to reduce the financial burden on travellers and ensure confirmed seating at a time when demand for tickets is very high.
On the first day, 51 AC seater and sleeper buses carried more than 2,300 passengers. Of these, 28 buses departed from Bihar to other states and 23 returned to Bihar. The Delhi–Muzaffarpur, Delhi–Sitamarhi and Delhi–Siwan routes saw the highest demand. Several buses also departed from Patna, Gaya, Kishanganj, Madhubani, Supaul, Shivhar and Araria to Delhi and Gurugram, while return services operated from Delhi and nearby cities to key districts in Bihar.
The special service began on February 23 and will continue until March 23, covering both Holi and Eid travel. A total of 118 AC buses will operate between Delhi and Haryana from major Bihar cities including Patna, Muzaffarpur, Purnia, Darbhanga and Gaya. Officials said more buses may be added if passenger demand increases further in the coming days.
