Demand surges for seats on buses to North Bengal ahead of Durga Puja

Kolkata: With just a few days left for Durga Puja, the demand for seats in the

state-run buses from Kolkata

to North Bengal is running high.

The increase in demand is the result of massive development of the tourism infrastructure in North Bengal.

According to a senior official of the North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC), besides railways and flights, the demand for bus service has also gone up. One of the reasons behind the increase in demand for bus service is good road condition.

In the past seven years, the quality of road has improved and stress was also given on ensuring better "riding quality" of all the roads. The improvement in the "riding quality" of roads ensures a smooth travelling experience, with less wear and tear of vehicles.

It may be mentioned that thousands of people opt for bus service to visit different places in North Bengal. Around 30 to 35 buses of NBSTC operate almost every day from Kolkata to different parts of North Bengal including Cooch Behar, Alipurduar, Mathabhanga, Tufanganj, Siliguri, Jalpaiguri, Islampur, Malda, Balurghat and Raiganj.

It may be mentioned that tourists for Darjeeling are also preferring to avail bus service up to Siliguri.

Besides collecting tickets from counters in Kolkata, online ticket booking is also going on in full swing ahead of Durga Puja.

According to an official of NBSTC, the initiative of introducing the online booking system was taken to ensure that people can book a seat with just a single click, avoiding long queues outside booking counters at bus depots.

Officials of the state Transport department and NBSTC had felt the need of introducing the online ticket booking system after receiving several requests for the same.

Moreover, with the better bus service compared to that of the erstwhile Left Front regime, the demand for seats has also gone up. So, the step was taken to introduce the system.

Online booking can be done by logging into the website – nbstconline.com. All sorts of bus service related information is also available on the website.

It may be mentioned that many tourists visit North Bengal during Puja and many go in winter as well.

The Mamata Banerjee government has carried out massive work in developing tourism infrastructure in North Bengal and it has helped in attracting more tourists.

NBSTC has also arranged for some special bus services during Puja and it includes Durga Puja tour in Cooch Behar, Jalpaiguri and Malda.