The Punjab government is investigating the water buses purchased eight years ago during the last Akali BJP government in Punjab. Spending Rs 8.63 crore on this project was a wrong decision. This claim has been made by Punjab Tourism and Cultural Affairs Minister Tarunpreet Singh. He said that this bus is now completely unfit for operation and the possibility of a major accident cannot be ruled out due to its operation. The government will not take any such decision which may endanger the life and property of the public. He said that the government has no plans to run water buses in Ranjit Singh Sagar Lake.
Buses are putting financial burden on people
The minister said that spending Rs 8.63 crore on this project by the previous governments was a wrong decision. He also criticizes the unnecessary financial burden on the people of Punjab. He said that water buses have been a symbol of corruption. The minister said that this water bus has proved to be a loss-making deal earlier also. Because crores of rupees were spent on it, while the income was nominal.
He reiterated that this water bus has become completely useless and there is no possibility of running it in future. Saund said that this ‘super fail’ project is the result of wrong decisions of previous governments, which led to the wastage of public money. This money could have been used in public welfare schemes.
The project was started in the year 2016
These buses were purchased in the year 2016 during the Akali-BJP government. These buses were the dream project of the then Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. These buses were purchased from a private company at a cost of about four and a half crores. At that time these buses were run in Harike Wetland. It was a total project of nine and a half crores.
However, at that time the buses ran for only about ten days. After which the Congress government came to power. The then minister Navjot Singh Sidhu had said that these buses will be auctioned, Shikaras will be run on the lines of Kashmir. After this the buses were kept in the garage.
