Hop-on-hop-off bus service for tourists unveiled in Kurukshetra

The Kurukshetra Development Board has unveiled a hop-on-hop-off bus service in a bid to offer tours to visitors, including devotees. Under the ambitious project, tourists will be able to board a bus from the KDB Tourist Information and Facilitation Centre (TIFC) at Arjun Chowk here, and embark on a tour of prominent religious and historic sites in Kurukshetra.

The board has engaged a Haryana Roadways bus for trial runs, and plans to introduce electric buses later.

It has identified 18 locations to be included in the tour — including religious and tourist spots such as Brahma Sarovar, Gita Gyan Santhanam, Birla Mandir, Tirupati Balaji temple, Buddha Stupa, Jyotisar, Sthaneshwar temple, Bhadrakali temple, and Bir Pipli. Tourists will be able to get off the bus at locations they want to explore, and then catch the bus again during its next round. The project was initially conceived back in 2020 on the directions of then Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. However, it was placed on the back burner.

According to KDB officials, the service will help provide authentic information about sites associated with the Mahabharata, as a tourist guide has been appointed to share information during the tour. Kurukshetra Development Board honorary secretary Upender Singhal said, “A trial run has been started, and a guide has been appointed to inform tourists about prominent spots from Pipli to Jyotisar. Currently, one bus has been engaged. It is expected to complete a tour in around an hour. After gauging the response, more buses will be introduced, and the board may also introduce an audio guide system in the buses.”

“There are plans to introduce electric buses for the tour service, and to expand the facility to cover tirthas under the 48-kos land — spread across Kurukshetra, Karnal, Kaithal, Panipat, and Jind districts of the state,” he added. The 48-kos Tirtha Monitoring Committee Chairman, Madan Mohan Chhabra, said, “The tour facility has been launched to facilitate tourists, and give them authentic information. The project was approved during a board meeting two years ago. Recently, during a board meeting, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini issued directions to start the bus service.”

A special 48-kos tirtha parikarma bus service was started in 2017, but was stopped within a year. It was again resumed, but had to be stopped again due to Covid. During the International Gita Mahotsav, special Haryana Roadways buses are deployed for tourists.

Haryana Tribune