After a long haul of over 20 months, the Delhi-Kathmandu DTC ‘Maitri Bus Sewa” service has finally resumed. The first bus to travel was carrying 12 passengers from Ambedkar Terminal in Delhi to Kathmandu (the capital of Nepal).
The Delhi-Kathmandu bus service to connect the capital cities of India and Nepal was launched in November 2014 and was temporarily closed down on March 23, 2020 due to Covid. Now, the service has been resumed with strict adherence to guidelines, including mandatory double-dose vaccination and a negative RT-PCR test report to be produced by the passengers before boarding.
A senior officer of the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) said, “There were 12 passengers in the bus for Kathmandu that left Ambedkar Terminal of DTC at 10 am. The return bus from Kathmandu will leave from there on Thursday morning”.
Passengers going to Kathmandu expressed their happiness that the bus service which hit a hiatus due to Covid-19, was restarted. the passengers also stated that the service will help bring people of the two countries together.
“It’s a good move to start this bus service. A lot of people travel between Nepal and India for tourism and business, and this luxury bus will fulfil that need and help build on the relationship between the two nations,” a passenger reportedly said.
According to the officials, it is “mandatory” for all the passengers to carry certificates of both doses of the Covid vaccine and a negative RT-PCR test report within 72 hours of the start of the journey. The passengers will not be allowed to board the bus if they fail to produce the documents.
The bus service was initiated as a symbol of friendship between the two nations and since its beginning, the buses have been carrying pilgrims, tourists, foreign delegates and many more tourists.
