Srinagar, Jul 20 (IANS): Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik and Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprise Arvind Ganpat Sawant on Friday flagged off a fleet of electric buses in Srinagar city.

An official statement said: "A total of 20 e-buses will ply on different routes in Srinagar. The fleet of e-buses is being operated by state road transport corporation. The fleet was flagged off from the Sher-e-Kashmir International Convention Complex (SKICC) in Srinagar by the Governor and the Union minister".

Speaking on the occasion, the Governor said the start of electric bus service was a step forward towards providing eco-friendly public transportation with modern facilities to the commuters in the region.

He emphasised on the need for using e-buses to abate pollution levels and urged the people to largely utilise public transport for their daily travel in a bid to contribute towards environment preservation.

Sawant said the fleet of e-buses will contribute in reducing pollution levels. He said the Central government was taking several initiatives to meet the challenges of environmental threats by focussing on improving the quality of mass transportation.

The Union minister said the state government has made a demand for 150 e-buses and the Centre will meet this demand in total.