India, June 22 -- The growing number of breakdowns involving electric buses (e-buses) operated by private contractors has emerged as a major concern for Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML), with commuters increasingly bearing the brunt of unreliable public transport services. Despite repeated review meetings, warnings and directives issued by PMPML, the situation has shown little improvement, raising serious questions about the effectiveness of maintenance practices and the accountability of contractors entrusted with operating a large portion of the city's bus fleet.

Over the past five months, PMPML - the lifeline for nearly one million daily commuters across Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad and the Pune Metropolitan Region (PMR) ...