All praise for BOCI’s stupendous effort
The maiden edition of the country’s newest public transport platform Prawaas 2017 held from July 28 to 30 in Navi Mumbai turned out to be an overwhelming success as it brought a sense of direction to all stakeholders in the bus and car transport, with unanimous agreement that it is high time the nation shifts its priority towards improving and stepping up usage of public transport. Organized by the Bus Operators Confederation of India (BOCI), with MM Activ Sci-tech communications as the event management partner, Prawaas brought together all the stakeholders from the Bus & Car operator and allied sectors on a single platform. Over 10,000 participants including 3,000 bus and taxi operators, 110 speakers and more than 120 exhibitors shared ideas and displayed their products & services over three action-packed days. For the first time ever, both public & private bus operators explored possibilities of deeper collaboration with the aim of evolving towards better public private partnership models.
The inaugural event saw a star-studded gathering take the stage including Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping, Mr. Yoonus Khan, Minister for PWD and Transport Department, Government of Rajasthan, Mr. Jaykumar Jitendrasingh Rawal, Minister of Tourism, Government of Maharashtra, Mr. Swantantra Dev Singh, Minister of State, Ministry of Transport, Protocol, Energy, Government of UP, Mr. K.T. Rajashekhara, Chairman, Prasanna Patwardhan, President, BOCI, Mr. T. Venkataraman, Senior Vice President, Global Bus, Ashok Leyland, Mr. Girish Wagh, Head – Commercial Vehicle Business Unit, Tata Motors, Mr. Akash Passey, Senior Vice President, Business Region International, Volvo Bus Corporation, Mr. Sunil N. Savla, Director, Mumbai Bus Malak Sanghatana (MBMS), Mr. Zubin Khopoliwala, President, Federation of Tourists Taxi Operators (FOTTO), and Mr. Jagdish Patankar, Executive Chairman, MM Activ Sci-Tech Communications.
Addressing a highly excited and enthused gathering at the inaugural session, Mr. Gadkari emphasized his focus on road construction, the need for robust trucks and buses and agreed to ease policies if the OEMs gear up to work on alternative fuel solutions for the future. “We want to progress with sustainable solutions and those who cannot provide them will be made to change. Air-conditioning is a must in the cabins for drivers to feel comfortable; the OEMs and transporters must consider it. My Government is ready to support the OEMs if they work on alternative fuels like, ethanol, electric and methane solutions”, averred the Union Minister.
Mass transport in India
BOCI, the apex body comprising State Level Federations and District Level Bus Operator Associations, is envisaged as a Network of Networks. BOCI consists of members from six segments, namely, intercity operators, intra-city operators, school bus operators, employee transport operators, tour operators and maxi cab & taxi operators. “Members of BOCI collectively operate 15 lakh buses on Indian roads which is a point towards its significance. We should be given a level playing field as the STUs and should be given facilities to help serve the public,” said Mr. Prasanna Patwardhan, President, BOCI, as part of his very impressive speech at the inaugural session.
It is a known fact that 90 per cent of Indians do not own any vehicle and are dependent on public transport. The passenger traffic via public transport in 2012-13 was 5,756 billion passenger km out of which the share of road transport was 85 per cent. The share of bus transport was at 74 per cent or 4,260 billion passenger km while privately-operated buses clocked 3,688 billion passenger km, reflecting the fact that private sector in bus operations handle over 64 per cent of the passenger traffic.
Public transport demand is expected to grow at 15.4 per cent p.a. over the next 20 years and India is presently ill-equipped to cater to this demand. There are many issues that need to be addressed such as lack of investment by the Government, poor development of public transport infrastructure, high cost of funding, heavy taxation by State Governments, improvement in quality of service & maintenance, lack of trained & skilled manpower and need for Government support towards the sector.
OEMs in full flare
Given the platform and its importance to all the bus operators, all the major OEMs including Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Eicher, Mahindra, Volvo Buses and Scania exhibited their products.
Tata Motors showcased a range of latest technologies of smart city commercial vehicle solutions including a 12 meter AC electric bus, Winger 15 S, G2 luxury AC bus, Magic Electric, and their passenger transport vehicles Zest and Bolt. Dr. A.K. Jindal, Head, Engineering Research Centre, Tata Motors, said: “It is important for us to showcase our electric vehicle offerings, with their best-in-class value proposition. Prawaas as a platform helps us also understand customer requirements under different operating conditions, and suitably optimize our offerings. Tata Motors is also working with various study groups formed by the Central Government to work out various business models for operating electric vehicles and to optimize the overall economics of these buses.”
Mr. T. Venkataraman, Senior Vice President, Global Bus, Ashok Leyland: “Whether it is any application as operated by BOCI members, Ashok Leyland is ready to provide vehicles that meet their requirements. We should all work shoulder-to-shoulder in order to make this congregation a huge success”, while address the gathering during the inaugural function.
Eicher showcased its Skyline Pro Midi Bus in the AC Variant and India’s first AMT HCV bus, targeting the tourist and staff transportation segments. Mr. Shyam Maller, Executive Vice President, Sales, Marketing & After Market – Light & Medium Duty Trucks, Buses, VE Commercial Vehicles, said: “This is a great forum to meet up with customers and being driven by large bus fleet operators who are part of BOCI, they are aware of their problems and are seeking solutions. They are also aware of newer technology and are taking great initiative in learning about their benefits. We have had good enquiries from STUs and have understood that STUs are increasingly treading the part of PPP which is good news for us.”
Mahindra Truck and Bus Division displayed its all new Comfio with enhanced seating with wider width of 2,350 mm in 32- and 40-seat capacities. The company also had on display its proven economical yet stylish school bus Excelo.
Volvo Buses exhibited the Volvo Hybrid and the Volvo 9400 coach, reinforcing the company’s track record of delivering market-defining solutions. The Volvo Hybrid is the first electrified bus to be commercialized in India with two buses that have been piloting by the Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport Corporation since May 2016 delivering fuel economy and emission benefits to the tune of 35 per cent. “We believe that hybrid buses are an immediately deployable solution, while necessary conditions are being created for the large-scale adoption of full electric buses. Developed markets have followed a similar approach to the adoption of electromobility,” said Mr. VRV Sriprasad, Managing Director, Volvo Buses – South Asia.
The other Swedish bus and coach maker, Scania showcased its ethanol city bus and Metrolink intercity coach.
Force Motors showcased its Traveller Royale and Trax Deluxe models at the show. The Traveller Royale has been available for a year now and is quite an economical option since it has half the seating capacity of a large luxurious bus. Available in a price bracket of Rs. 23 to 30 lakh, the company has sold over 125 units of the vehicle already. “We want to position the Traveller Royale as a luxurious connectivity vehicle connecting small towns and big cities, like between Shirdi and Mumbai. In areas where the occupancy in a big luxury bus is 50 to 60 per cent, this will be a very good option for transporters,” revealed Mr. Rajat Sinha, Sr. Manager (Precious Customer Mgmt.), Force Motors.
While the Force Trax Deluxe has not been so much in the public eye and in the cities given it is more popular in Tier-2 cities and rural areas, the company looked to leverage the fantastic opportunity provided by the organizers by deciding to display the Trax Deluxe at the country’s first bus and car travel show.
Apart from the OEMs, leading bus body builders MG Group and Veera Vahana, who have now evolved to the league of complete vehicle manufacturers, made their presence felt at the event. While MG Group presented its Columbus tarmac coach that was first unveiled last November and its Shiv Shahi sleeper coach built for MSRTC, Veera Vahana displayed its sleeper coach and a left-hand drive school bus built for the Middle East market.
While the exhibition and conference received tremendous response during the second and third days of the event, the Prawaas Excellence Awards was one of the most important highlights of the inaugural edition of the show. Under the observation of Ernst & Young and BOCI, the Awards recognized the different stakeholders in the industry and acknowledged their contributions towards best practices, services and innovations.
