The state government informed Delhi high court that it has decided to include some of the former Blueline operators in its cluster scheme in order to rehabilitate them. It will allow operators to run over 500 buses on two route clusters if they bid for these clusters after forming a firm or a cooperative society.

Standing counsel for the government, Najmi Waziri said the operators can participate in the bidding for clusters either by forming a company or cooperative society under the Route Cluster Scheme. But no operator will be allowed to run buses as individual entities said Waziri, adding if they bid as a firm, they could be given up to two route clusters. which would enable them to operate at least 500 buses in the city.

The government has also utilised 1045 Blueline buses as contract carriages and about 187 such buses were allowed to ply outside the city roads, the counsel informed HC.

The bench was hearing a plea of Blueline bus operators for a direction to the government for proper utilisation of the buses following the high court's previous order. The operators' counsel Meet Malhotra said in March that the court had directed the government to look into the possibility of using the buses in meaningful way but no policy has been framed so far.

Meanwhile, noting that litigants and lawyers have to undergo a lot of hardship following new security measures in the wake of last week's bomb blast, Delhi high court on Friday asked Delhi Transport Commission to augment its feeder service to ferry litigants and lawyers from central parking at India Gate to various courts.

A division bench comprising Justice A K Sikri and Justice Suresh Kait asked the DTC counsel Sumeet Pushkarna to seek instructions and reply how the frequency of trips and number of buses can be increased to handle the rush of litigants and lawyers to HC and even the Supreme Court. After the blast, Delhi Police has imposed a blanket ban on parkings near court premises and made it mandatory for everyone to park vehicles at C-hexagon at India Gate or Bhairon Marg, from where DTC buses then bring passengers to the court.