Spanner in the works
• The DTC floats a tender for modern, commuter and environment-friendly urban buses.
• Nine companies, including Volvo, Daewoo, Optaire and India's Ashok leyland and TElCO, bid.
• The DTC selects UK-based Optaire and Sweden's Volvo.
• These buses give 3.2 kilometres to the litre with 110 passengers. DTC's exist- ing fleet has similar efficiency but with a load of only 60 passengers. They are also polluting and unsuited to city use. .Ashok leyland and TElCO promise buses for Rs 90 lakh each. Optaire and Volvo offer theirs for Rs 28 lakh and are asked to supply 1,400 and 100 buses respectively.
• The PMO intervenes, puts the deal on hold and asks the DTC to justify the need of the buses.
• Ashok leyland and Telco mobilise the 'Swadeshi brigade' which forces the government to stall the deal till the coming elections.