Parliament Question: National Smart Public Transport Mission

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1947 TO BE ANSWERED ON 30 JULY, 2026 NATIONAL SMART PUBLIC TRANSPORT MISSION NO. 1947 SHRI DHARAMBIR SINGH:

Will the Minister of HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has undertaken any initiative to integrate public transport, digital ticketing, non-motorised transport and last-mile connectivity through a National Smart Public Transport Mission and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) are proposed to receive financial and technical assistance for implementation of integrated mobility solutions and if so, the details thereof;

(c) the measures taken to reduce traffic congestion and improve urban mobility through digital technologies; and

(d) whether towns in the Bhiwani-Mahendragarh Lok Sabha Constituency are proposed to be included under the said initiative and if so, the details thereof? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS (SHRI TOKHAN SAHU)

(a) to (d): ‘Urban planning’ is a State subject, therefore, the respective State Governments are responsible for planning, initiating and developing proposal for development of urban infrastructure including public transport project, measures to reduce congestion, improve urban mobility through digital technologies etc. in different cities.

Central Government has issued various policy guidelines like National Urban Transport Policy 2006 and The Metro Policy 2017 for systematic planning and execution of Public Transport project including metro project, which are applicable to all regions of India.

As on date, per se there is no National Smart Public Transport Scheme for integrated public transport, digital ticketing, non- motorized transport, last- mile connectivity. …2/--2- However, Central Government considers Central Financial Assistance, for deployment of e- buses under various Central Schemes (PM e- Bus Sewa, PM e- Drive etc.) and for implementation of Metro projects as and when posed by concerned State Government. Under above interventions digital ticketing, integrated public Transport etc. are priority items.

National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) is an interoperable card with vision of “One Nation, One Card”, which works seamlessly among different Metro/RRTS and Bus operators. The Ministry has issued directions for implementation of National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) ecosystem based on qSPARC (quick Specification for Payment Application of RuPay Chip) developed by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). It is functional in 13 Metro projects and 11 Bus Transport corporations by ensuring ease of ticketing through these digital technologies, which facilitates shift from private vehicle to public transport thereby reducing traffic congestion.

Further, PM-eBus Sewa Guidelines issued by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs includes implementation of NCMC based Automatic Fare Collection System (AFCS) for bus operations.

Further, under “Transport Planning and Capacity Building in Urban Transport for metro and non metro projects” sub scheme of MoHUA, various studies like preparation of Integrated Mobility Plan, Detailed Project Reports, Multi Modal integration plans etc. have been eligible components for Central Finance Assistance for cities, ULBs etc. which is considered based on feasibility of proposal as and when posed by concerned State Government.

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