Varanasi: Uttar Pradesh govt has expanded festival transport arrangements in the Varanasi region, deploying 185 additional buses for 12 days to help passengers returning home for Diwali and Chhath.UP State Road Transport Corporation’s regional manager Parshuram Pandey said passenger rush rises sharply during Diwali and Chhath, prompting the corporation to add buses and prepare for higher demand. He said that trips are being increased wherever required to ensure smoother movement across major routes from Varanasi, Ghazipur, Jaunpur, Sonbhadra and Vindhyanagar for the people travelling home to celebrate the festivals with their families.The UPSRTC will operate 331 buses in the Varanasi region during the festive season, against 146 buses on normal days. The highest increase has been made on the Varanasi-Gorakhpur route with the addition of 72 buses. The Varanasi-Lucknow route will get 31 additional buses, while 25 more buses will operate on the Ghazipur-Lucknow-Kanpur route. Thirteen extra buses have been arranged for Varanasi-Kanpur, and more services will be available for Prayagraj, Baidhan, Shaktinagar and other key destinations.For the first time, direct bus services to Delhi will be available from Ghazipur and Jaunpur during Chhath. One BS-6 bus will run from Ghazipur to Delhi, while two BS-6 buses will operate from Jaunpur to Delhi, giving passengers from both districts a direct travel option.At Varanasi’s Chaudhary Charan Singh Interstate Bus Station, Cantt, staff will be deployed round the clock in shifts. They will guide passengers, provide route information and assist them in boarding buses during the 12-day operation.Additional services include 10 buses on Varanasi-Baidhan, eight on Jaunpur-Gorakhpur-Prayagraj, 10 on Jaunpur-Kanpur, eight on Ghazipur-Gorakhpur, three on Shaktinagar-Lucknow and two on Shaktinagar-Kanpur, ensuring wider coverage across eastern Uttar Pradesh for festival travel demand.
