Electric commercial vehicle leasing platform DRIVN has entered into a partnership with Prasanna Purple Mobility Solutions Private Limited, one of India’s leading private intercity bus operators, to deploy 100 electric buses across major intercity corridors. The collaboration aims to accelerate the electrification of India’s private intercity bus sector through an asset-light operating lease model.
The first batch of electric buses is scheduled to be deployed from July–August 2026, with operations initially commencing on high-traffic routes including Mumbai–Pune, Bengaluru–Chennai, and Hyderabad–Vijayawada. The companies are also evaluating additional corridors to support rapid expansion following the initial deployment.
Under the agreement, DRIVN will provide the electric buses to Prasanna Purple through its long-term operating lease model. The approach is designed to help private bus operators transition to electric mobility without significant upfront capital expenditure while benefiting from long-term fleet support and operational flexibility.
Commenting on the partnership, Alpna Jain, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer of DRIVN, said that large-scale commercial vehicle electrification requires financing models that make the transition commercially sustainable for fleet operators. She noted that DRIVN’s operating lease model provides predictable, competitive, and long-term capital while enabling operators to leverage the company’s proprietary technology platform for improved fleet management and revenue optimisation.
Saurabh P. Patwardhan, Director of Prasanna Group, said the partnership represents an important milestone in advancing sustainable intercity transportation. He stated that the collaboration would support the deployment of reliable, comfortable, and operationally efficient electric buses while creating a scalable model that could accelerate electric bus adoption across the private intercity transport sector.
The companies said the partnership reflects their shared commitment to decarbonising India’s intercity passenger mobility ecosystem. By combining DRIVN’s technology-enabled leasing model with Prasanna Purple’s operational expertise, the initiative aims to establish a scalable framework for wider adoption of electric buses across the country.
