Mumbai's BEST presents Rs 1,887 crore deficit budget for 2021-22

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The Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking on Saturday presented a deficit budget of Rs 1,887.83 crore while providing an outlay of Rs 446.07 crore for capital expenditure for the fiscal 2021-22.

The undertaking, which supplies electricity to several areas in Mumbai and bus services to the metropolitan region, currently has 3,875 buses, including 1,099 taken on wet lease.

Orders and bids are in place for 300 electric and 600 CNG buses, all part of the civic-run undertaking's plan to increase its fleet to 6,337 by March-end in 2022 in the first phase.

It plans to install passenger information systems at 800 locations on its sprawling network to give real-time movement updates to patrons, officials said.

BEST will also be part of a national common mobility "one nation, one card" mechanism that is being helmed by the Centre for public transport units, they added. Pilot projects have commenced in the undertaking's Wadala and Colaba depots, the officials pointed out.