Free public transportation to women - Fusion - WeRIndia

Delhi government is giving several attractive initiatives considering the upcoming Assembly elections. The Kejriwal led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) seems to focus on gaining public votes in the upcoming elections.

Earlier the Delhi government approved 10 per cent quota jobs for EWS in the government jobs. Now the government has taken another key initiative which allows all women to travel freely on public transportation.

Two days ago, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced that all women would be allowed to travel free of cost on all Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), metro trains and cluster buses.

The AAP government anticipates that this move would encourage women to utilize public transport more and improve their travel experience as well as their safety.

CM Kejriwal urged all the women to use this facility. He said that though the government approves free travel on public transportation, those who can afford their travel can pay for their tickets.

He said that the subsidy would not be imposed on anyone. Hence, those who can afford for their travel can buy tickets so that the underprivileged can get the subsidy. And that way, they can also help the government by not imposing a heavy burden in the form of subsidy.

The Central government and the Delhi government are equal partners in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC). In this context, this decision would cost the Delhi government heavily as the subsidy would be borne by it completely. And it is expected to cost ₹700 crore per year.

Kejriwal said that the decision will be implemented within 2 or 3 months after studying a detailed proposal. The CM asked the officials to submit a detailed proposal for both DTC and Metro within a week’s time on the feasibility of the program.

He also sought the suggestions from people on its implementation.

Image credit:  DTC Bus Non AC1 image by Ramesh NG is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Image Reference: https://www.flickr.com/photos/rameshng/5559289292