Odisha State Road Transport Corporation or OSRTC is the state-owned public road transport corporation of the Eastern Indian state of Odisha. Headquartered in Bhubaneswar, OSRTC plays a crucial role in connecting major cities, district headquarters, rural regions, and neighboring states through its intercity and interstate operations with 577 buses of mainline fleet and 1422 buses of rural fleet.
Founded in 1974, the OSRTC bridges distances between 130+ cities, towns, and business centres within Odisha and 68 cities outside the state, strengthening regional integration and interstate connectivity. The Corporation also plays a vital role in supporting education and employment by enabling access to over 62,000 educational institutions, making daily mobility easier for students, professionals, and the workforce alike.
The origins of public road transport in Odisha trace back to 1948, when the State Government took over bus services previously operated by erstwhile princely states and formed the State Transport Services (STS), starting with a staff of 4,089 and a fleet of 523 buses. In 1950, the Road Transport Corporations Act (Act No. 64 of 1950) was enacted by the Central Government, mandating the creation of state road transport corporations. Subsequently, the OSRTC Rules were framed in 1967 as a step toward establishing a dedicated statutory transport corporation in Odisha.
OSRTC became functional on 15 May 1974, when the assets and employees of the STS were formally transferred to the new corporation. Initially, it operated with share capital contributions from the State and Central Governments in a 2:1 ratio. Further strengthening its reach, the ORT Company, which operated primarily in the southern districts of Odisha, was merged with OSRTC on 16 August 1990, bringing its assets, liabilities, and staff under OSRTCâÂÂs management. Around this time, the Central Government also ceased its share capital contribution (from 1990âÂÂ91 onwards), leaving the state government as the primary sponsor.
OSRTC maintains a strong intercity and interstate network supported by a fleet of 577 buses. OSRTC offers online reservations, real-time bus tracking, and user-friendly onboard facilities. OSRTC's services operate on strategic routes connecting major commercial centres, district headquarters, and prominent pilgrimage destinations.
Under the Mukhyamantri Bus Seva (MBS), OSRTC operates a dedicated rural fleet of 1422 buses, connecting over 6720 Gram Panchayats across Odisha, enabling daily mobility for around 3.5 lakh citizens. This fleet is designed to ensure affordable, inclusive, and dependable transport for rural populations, with special focus on students, women, senior citizens, and daily commuters.
Atal Bus Stands are modern bus terminals that are being developed across all 314 Blocks of Odisha, creating well-planned passenger facilities that enhance commuter convenience, accessibility, and overall transport infrastructure.
ITMS is a citizen-focused digital platform that enables real-time fleet tracking, e-ticketing, automated scheduling, and enhanced passenger safety. The system also features a comprehensive grievance redressal mechanism, ensuring efficient, transparent, and responsive service delivery.
ICCC is a centralized real-time operations hub based at Paribahan Bhawan, designed to monitor services, manage incidents, and improve operational responsiveness and decision-making across the network.
Shree Jagannath Express buses are ultra-premium intercity and interstate buses operating with 15-metre multi-axle Volvo 9600 coaches, connecting district headquarters with major cities, Puri and Bhubaneswar.
Odisha State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC) has three divisions comprising a total of 23 depots.
Apart from all these accolades, the success story of OSRTC has been included in the syllabus of Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad as a case study.