Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad will each have an inter-state bus terminus by the end of 2021. Global investors will be wooed for the multi-storey terminuses, which officials said will have cafeterias, shops, hotels, multiplexes, accommodation facilities, and sufficiently large parking bays and garages.

Currently, all the three cities have to make do with cramped terminuses — Sitaramdera in Jamshedpur, Bartand in Dhanbad and the state capital’s Birsa Munda Bus Terminal at Khadgarha.

For the new terminuses, a 30-acre plot has been selected at Panduki in Govindpur, nearly 12km from Dhanbad, a 10-acre plot has been earmarked along NH-33 in Dimna, Mango, Jamshedpur, and over 30 acres have been identified at Dubaliya in Kanke, around 20km from Ranchi.

Ashutosh Ojha, a resident of Sitaramdera who works in a government school and frequently uses long-distance buses to reach Ranchi, did not feel the distance of the terminus from the city centre would be a problem.

“The proposed ISBT at Dimna in Mango would be nearly 6km from heart of the city and we would have to take personal or public transport to reach our destination in city. However, it is a blessing in disguise as it would decongest city traffic along Dimna Road in Mango especially from long distance buses and we can use this stretch to reach city in quick time as against now when there are frequent traffic snarls,” he said.

Jharkhand Urban Infrastructure Development Company Limited (Juidco) has set the ball rolling for the new terminuses, which will be built in private public partnership (PPP) mode.

“These are mega projects with each project costing not less than Rs 150 crore, and we will be inviting global tenders,” a senior Juidco official said under cover of anonymity because he is not authorised to brief the media.

“We have decided to seek advice/suggestions of global investors for the projects at BNR Chanakya hotel in Ranchi on June 10 during an investors’ summit. These suggestions will be incorporated in the final detailed project report (DPR) to be presented before the state cabinet in late June or July for approval. Soon after getting the approval we will float the tenders so that private bidders are selected at the earliest and work commences in October.”

The urban development department has ordered that the ground-blessing ceremony of the terminuses be done by September to avoid delay due to the model code of conduct kicking for the Assembly elections scheduled for later this year, the official said.

“The work will commence after the monsoon and we hope to make the projects operational by end-2021,” the official added.

Juidco spokesperson Ashutosh Kumar Singh confirmed the investors’ summit on June 10. “The department will take suggestion of the global bidders during the investors’ summit on June 10 in Ranchi for the inter-state bus terminus projects in Ranchi, Jamshedpur and Dhanbad. Draft DPRs of all the three projects, prepared by Karnataka-based I-Deck Pvt Ltd, is ready with the department along with bidding parameters. Land has also been identified in the three cities. We hope to get the work started at the earliest,” Singh said.