Mokokchung | October 10
Nagaland State Transport (NST) buses from Mokokchung to Kohima, which had been suspended since 2019, have resumed operation since last week. According to Nüksung Pongener, an NST staff, they have now improved their service by adding one more bus that runs daily from Kohima to Mokokchung and vice versa, thereby making the NST bus service a daily one.
Pongener mentioned that they discontinued running the bus in 2019 because there were not enough passengers willing to travel on the bus and would rather use the Sumo, which took less time to reach the destination.
“There was a point when we would run with two to three passengers on the bus, which was not the best scenario. Also, individuals didn’t care if the NST rates were cheaper or not; they just wanted to get to their destination as soon as possible, so they chose other modes of transportation,” Pongener added.
When asked why they have decided to resume their service again after all these years, Pongener said, “Since we heard that Sumo taxi service was disrupted, for the convenience of the people, NST introduced our service once again, and now that we are receiving a good number of passengers, we have now made sure that our service, which was on alternate basis until today, has now been upgraded to regular service.”
The NST buses from Mokokchung to Kohima and vice versa travels once a day departing at 6:00 a.m. and costs Rs. 220. Pongener is unsure whether NST will continue to operate indefinitely because it is dependent on the number of passengers that show up.
“If the passenger turnout is large, we will continue the service; if it is low, we will cease,” he explained.
There are currently seven NST buses services from Mokokchung town, with two buses going to Kohima, one going to Dimapur during the day on alternating days, two going to Dimapur at night, one going to Tuli during the day, and one going to Longjang during the day.
“In the future, if the NST department is given new buses, we hope to cover more routes,” Pongener said.
In response to how the State Transport wishes to upgrade or improve their service, he stated that the State government as well as the concerned Department is working hard to provide people with the best and most reliable service at a reasonable price, and he therefore encouraged the public to use their services.
“For example, at the moment, Sumos charges Rs. 750 per head, whereas NST charges only Rs. 220. So, sure, the department would want to appeal to the people to please assist the department by making use of the services we offer,” he appealed.