(This story originally appeared in on Apr 28, 2012)

NEW DELHI: With the bus cluster scheme moving at a snail’s pace , one of the concessionaires , Star Bus, is looking at branching out into the Metro feeder services . Its sister subsidiary , Green Wheels , will launch 25 battery-operated vehicles on Saturday .Branded G-Riks , these eco friendly vehicles will chargeRs 10 per passenger . They will initially travel between the Malviya Nagar Metro station and Select Citywalk Mall in Saket . The company plans to ramp up the fleet strength over the next few months .Launched by chief minister Sheila Dikshit , these battery-powered , pollution-free vehicles are expected to circulate at several other Metro stations soon . Ajay Singh of Angentum group , the promoters of both Star Bus and Green Wheels, said , “We plan to pump Rs 100 crore into the project over the next 15 months . Five thousand of these eco-friendly vehicles will be put on roads during that period .”The vehicles , which will come up in clusters ,will cover 2km in each cluster , providing last-mile connectivity .Next on the cluster list is Delhi University , Gurgaon and other locations , said Singh . “These vehicles don’t need a permit , and are safe traveling options ,” he added . Both vehicle and driver shall be provided and trained by the group . The seating capacity of the vehicle is two, in addition to the driver .As these are electric vehicles , charging stations will also be set up at strategic locations along the cluster route , said Singh . For instance , in the first cluster running between the Malviya Nagar Metro station and Select City Mall in Saket , the station will be set up in Saket . “While the Delhi Metro network has expanded really fast , it has also highlighted the need for an efficient feeder service for commuters .This step will hopefully address the issue of last-mile connectivity , which has become a sore point with commuters ,” Singh said . The three-wheeler G-Rik was developed after extensive research and development by Green Wheels for over two years and has been fully customized to adapt to Indian conditions . Incidentally , Star Bus is the concessionaire for the first bus cluster launched in May 2011. At present , Delhi Metro runs feeder service as well on certain routes.