<p>Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The Maharashtra tourism department has launched a fleet of 20 electric buses for hassle-free transport of tourists to the Ajanta Caves, an official said on Friday.</p>.<p>The first bus was commissioned on Friday to mark World Tourism Day. The buses will transport visitors from the parking lot to the cave complex.</p>.<p>Talking to <em>PTI</em>, assistant director of the state tourism department, Vijay Jadhav, said, "A fleet of 20 electric buses will cater to domestic and foreign tourists visiting the world heritage site. Earlier, a conventional diesel bus was being operated, and tourists had to wait a long time for the vehicle to get full." With the new fleet of buses, there will be no waiting time, and visitors can experience pollution-free travel, he said.</p>.<p>"The fleet of 20 buses, both air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned, have a carrying capacity of 14 and 22 passengers. We expect that the entire fleet will be operational by October 20. A film on the Ajanta Caves will be shown en route to give visitors an idea about the site," he said.</p>.<p>He further said a tourist-friendly booking system will also be launched.</p>.BMTC to get new buses by end of Sept, AC e-bus prototype in Oct.<p>"The bus service will employ 32 people. The plan is to ensure the service is available every two minutes," he said.</p>.<p>The Ajanta Caves, located around 100 km from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar city, comprise 30 complexes with viharas (worship halls) and monasteries with paintings depicting the life of Lord Buddha.</p>.<p>As many as 2,58,619 tourists, including more than 7,000 foreigners, have visited the site from January till August this year, an official from the Archaeological Survey of India.</p>
<p>Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The Maharashtra tourism department has launched a fleet of 20 electric buses for hassle-free transport of tourists to the Ajanta Caves, an official said on Friday.</p>.<p>The first bus was commissioned on Friday to mark World Tourism Day. The buses will transport visitors from the parking lot to the cave complex.</p>.<p>Talking to <em>PTI</em>, assistant director of the state tourism department, Vijay Jadhav, said, "A fleet of 20 electric buses will cater to domestic and foreign tourists visiting the world heritage site. Earlier, a conventional diesel bus was being operated, and tourists had to wait a long time for the vehicle to get full." With the new fleet of buses, there will be no waiting time, and visitors can experience pollution-free travel, he said.</p>.<p>"The fleet of 20 buses, both air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned, have a carrying capacity of 14 and 22 passengers. We expect that the entire fleet will be operational by October 20. A film on the Ajanta Caves will be shown en route to give visitors an idea about the site," he said.</p>.<p>He further said a tourist-friendly booking system will also be launched.</p>.BMTC to get new buses by end of Sept, AC e-bus prototype in Oct.<p>"The bus service will employ 32 people. The plan is to ensure the service is available every two minutes," he said.</p>.<p>The Ajanta Caves, located around 100 km from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar city, comprise 30 complexes with viharas (worship halls) and monasteries with paintings depicting the life of Lord Buddha.</p>.<p>As many as 2,58,619 tourists, including more than 7,000 foreigners, have visited the site from January till August this year, an official from the Archaeological Survey of India.</p>