Cooch Behar/Raiganj: AC bus service from Cooch Behar to Siliguri has been started by the North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC). The service was flagged off from the Cooch Behar Central Bus Terminus on Tuesday by NBSTC Chairman Partha Pratim Roy. Two AC buses will now run from Cooch Behar to Siliguri.
One AC bus will leave Cooch Behar at 7:40 am and the other from Siliguri at 8:50 am. In the afternoon, the bus will return from Cooch Behar at 2:40 pm and Siliguri at 3:50 pm. The bus will stop at only five places on the route to ensure speedy service.
Partha Pratim Roy said: “The subsidised fare has been kept at Rs 220. Apart from the Cooch Behar-Siliguri route, two buses will run from Kolkata to Digha. One bus will run on Raiganj-Siliguri route and one on Alipurduar-Siliguri route.”
In another development, it has been found that numerous long‑route buses are avoiding Raiganj depot and are instead using the newly-constructed National Highway-34 bypass. As a result, ticket sales at the depot have dropped sharply, prompting concerns over passenger inconvenience and revenue loss. The bypass road in Raiganj was commissioned last year and since then, many NBSTC buses have bypassed the depot to save time and fuel. Initially, they complied and resumed depot entries after official orders. But roughly a month ago, they began to avoid depot entry.
According to depot officials at Raiganj, the average daily entry of long‑route buses fell from 112 to 70 in the past month. This translates to an estimated revenue shortfall of nearly Rs 15,000 per day following reduced boarding at the depot. Gautam Paul, vice‑chairman of NBSTC Board and MLA from Karandighi, confirmed the situation and stated: “Despite prior directives, numerous long route buses violating the instruction of higher authorities are not entering Raiganj depot causing passengers inconvenience and revenue loss for NBSTC.
We planned to convene a meeting with the Divisional Manager to take measures against such employees for violating instructions.”