Malda bus terminus still a dream

Statesman News Service

MALDA, Dec. 4: Since 1995 the Malda district administration had been focusing on a proposed project for central bus terminus outside the heart of the English Bazaar but it is still a distant dream. Nobody knows what will be the fate of today's programme for this proposed central bus terminus project, organised by the district magistrate Mr CR Das, where the land and land reforms officials handed over papers to the engineers of the PWD to begin the proposed project from today. Interestingly, a few months back the Congress led Malda zilla parishad had organised a programme of laying the foundation stone for the same central bus terminus, which was also named after the former Malda MP ABA Ghani Khan Choudhury. Though the district magistrate was invited to attend the programme but he did not come. The cause was nothing but an objection raised by the district CPI-M leaders on technical points, which were justified from the administrative point of view. It maybe noted that the former minister of state for transport Mr Sushanta Ghosh had inaugurated the same central bus terminus project after sanctioning Rs 65 lakh for this project. Today, the district magistrate said five acres of land has been earmarked for the setting up of a central bus terminus on a total 35 acres land, near English Bazaar. The rest of the land may be used for setting up government offices and for the proposed Malda University, the district magistrate informed the reporters. According to him, a total of Rs 1.35 crore has been laying unused over the past few years. The Uttar Banga Unnayan Parishad had allotted Rs 1 crore and rest were allotted from people representatives’ fund. “A central bus terminus is imperative outside English Bazaar town to ease traffic snarl which is a perennial problem here”, said Mr Das. The transport department would own the land for the central bus terminus here, district officials said. The PWD officials said they would try to complete the estimated plan and project before monsoon.