Telangana’s Mahalakshmi scheme, offering free public transport rides to women, has provided economic relief but also led to unforeseen social challenges. Some beneficiaries report facing taunts and resentment from male commuters, highlighting a growing gender divide and raising questions about the broader social impacts of such well-intentioned initiatives.
The response to Telangana’s Mahalakshmi scheme has been so overwhelming that passengers have started complaining about crowded buses with little space even to stand, men taunting women for travelling for free. It is also indirectly widening the gender gap.
The driver was not in a good mood as he gingerly steered the bus from the MG Bus Station (MGBS) in Hyderabad. He has been with the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC) since 2009, and knew what was in store. The bus, too, seemed in dire need of repairs. Loose wires shuddered as the bus rattled. Some 15 seats were still vacant as the driver manoeuvred the 49-seat bus through the crowded road.
As the bus started eating up the distance, passengers boarded the vehicle. The seats were soon full and those who could not find seats clutched the grab handle overhead. Odour of sweat mixed with the smell of body sprays suffocated the standing passengers, as many of them leaned over those seated, hoping to catch a cool breeze.
The bus conductor was busy, squeezing himself through the bus packed with passengers. He spoke incessantly, requesting space, as he distributed tickets and tendered change. Despite the uncomfortable trip, none of the passengers complained loud though different thoughts might have crossed their minds.
Women passengers might have kept mum considering the free ride under the state government’s Mahalakshmi scheme. Men, however, wore a grumpy look.
Come 9 December 2024, the Mahalakshmi zero-ticket scheme — one of the six guarantees the Congress made ahead of the Assembly elections — that offers free rides for women and transgender persons on state-run non-luxury buses, will complete one year.
New scheme, new challenges
Srinivas is a bus conductor plying the Hyderabad-Achyumpet route, a seven-hour round trip. “With the free bus scheme, there’s a new set of challenges. Women passengers often board the bus with improper ID and refuse to update it despite requests. To top it all, they request stops that aren’t specified on the route,” Srinivas explained.
#Khabarlive spoke to passengers travelling to and from Hyderabad to other districts. Women were mostly happy over the scheme but they highlighted several issues they have been facing. Shortage of seats, and increased travel time were the major complaints.Besides, they also complained of rude staff and male passengers, who viewed the women as taking pleasure rides. One prominent difference seen in the travel patterns outside Hyderabad is the frequency. Except for a few government employees, and students, most passengers take the intrastate buses only once or twice a month.
Comfort takes a backseat
PG diploma student Jyotsna travels to her hometown Khammam once a month. “The free bus service is a good initiative, but the rush has made it impossible to take the bus,” she told #Khabarlive. “I travel once a month, or when there are long weekends. I prefer the free bus service but I often take the deluxe service. There won’t be even space to stand on buses offering free rides,” she added.
Jyotsna, however, said the Mahalakshmi scheme helped her save her monthly allowance. Usha, who is travelling to Sathupalli, seconded Jyotsna. “I go to my mother’s place for festivals or functions. During the past year, I mostly took the deluxe because of the rush. I feel people who have emergencies are facing difficulties due to the heavy rush,” she said.
Another group of women travelling to Kodada expressed happiness over the free bus services. “We have been able to save money. Though we don’t travel regularly, we were able to save money whenever we travelled, as we go in groups,” one of them said.
Another woman in the group, Anjamma felt there should be an increase in buses to make travel comfortable. mZuleika Begum was waiting at the MGBS with her family. She has been detesting the Mahalakshmi scheme. “Free buses have caused loss to our family than saving money. My sons and grandsons drive autos, and this scheme has affected their daily earnings,” she said.
A boon and a bane
A Palle Velugu bus to Yagagiri Gutta (Yadadri) entered the bus bay, triggering a sudden flurry of activity. People jostled with each other and the bus was soon filled to almost 60 percent of its capacity. By the time it passed Uppal, several passengers were standing. More than half of the passengers were women.
Government employee Anasuya was lucky to secure the last vacant seat at Uppal. She has been travelling on the route regularly. “I travel the same route every day. There is no doubt that the rush has increased in the past year, but the scheme can’t be dissed. It is a good scheme, which is helping many women,” she opined.
“Previously, people who would take autos are now taking buses, which is also safer and saves money,” Anasuya added. “On most days, I manage to get the seat, so it has not been a huge issue for me.” As the bus neared Ghatkesar, a few more people got into the bus. One among them was Anjali, a student pursuing her BSc in Agriculture in Hyderabad. She was now travelling from Chengicherla to Atmakur, her parents’ place.
Anjali felt that the free scheme has created problems. “Every other day I see people fighting for seats. We often have to travel on footboard,” she spoke about the rush. She made a suggestion to contain the rush. “Only female students should be provided free travel. Why for all,” she asked.
The student’s suggestion seemed difficult to digest. But she was not the only one who felt that free travel should not be offered to all women. Raj Kumar, an engineering student, waiting for a bus at Ghatkesar, also opined the same. “Since last year, I have not got a seat. We feel lucky if we could get inside instead of travelling on the footboard,” he said.
“A while ago, TGSRTC increased the frequency of buses, but it is back to square one,” Kumar added. Another student Yashashvini also echoed Anjali’s opinion. “It is something all students are saying. The scheme should be exclusively for students,” she said. A PG student waiting for a bus home, however, differed. “They should increase the frequency of schedules. Why should anyone be left out,” she chipped in.
Taunts by male passengers
Homemaker Padma said bus crew and male passengers seemed irritated on seeing women boarding the bus. “It is not as if we are travelling for fun. We travel only when there is some work. Do they think we have so much free time to travel without any work,” Padma, heading to Janagam, wondered. The woman said she mostly got a seat to travel.
Another passenger who was waiting for a bus to Hanamakonda backed Padma. “It happened to me. Last time while travelling during Dasara, a conductor spoke in a demeaning manner,” she complained. “Their attitude is like we are a burden,” most women passengers said. “Let them charge us for the tickets at subsidised rates so that the men will not taunt us so much.”
Meanwhile, the bus stopped. A family alighted after much pushing and shoving. They decided to deboard much ahead of their destination since they had no space to stand on the bus.
Free rides at what cost?
Soon the bus reached AIIMS Bibinagar, and a few people, who were seeking treatment from the central hospital deboarded the bus. A female patient, who was with her family, said the free bus scheme helped them tremendously, “Due to my health condition, we travel weekly, and the money we save on the bus fare is used for my medication.”
Another patient, Ramalakshmi, however, saw a catch in the free ride scheme. “Everyone is seeing just the meagre amount saved on bus fares, but the government is collecting this amount by inflating other rates.” She preferred subsidised food grains to free travel.
Interestingly, another passenger to Hanamkonda pointed at a fact. “It is not like we got seats all the time a year ago. We used to buy tickets then, but were we guaranteed seats? The issue has definitely increased now, but it is not new,” she asserted.
On the way to Bibnagar, Srinivas Reddy, a resident of Hyderabad’s Vansthalipuram, said he travelled to Jangam once a month for the past 30 years with his wife. The couple has been finding bus rides difficult now.
Similarly, another traveller to Jangam, who gave a miss to the earlier bus due to a lack of space, lamented that he hadn’t sat on a bus for a year. Kesara, a farmer from near Ghatkesar, opined that the government would be better off spending the money on education.
However, not everyone viewed the scheme in a negative light. Rajashekhar, a 52-year-old physically challenged person, said the scheme was beneficial. Travelling with his wife Suvarna, a 40-year-old cleaner in Hyderabad, he said that they were saving money.
“There were days earlier when I’d be scared when I was short of money to travel. Since the free bus scheme was launched, I’m not at all worried. Further, I save my two-way fare of ₹100 every day,” Suvarna added.
Rajashekhar revealed that he didn’t face any challenge on the bus. “People are nice enough to vacate their seat for me. However, I wish that they increase the fleet and frequency of the buses,” he said. On the other hand, another couple, Dinesh and Sai Priya bashed the scheme. Dinesh called the scheme a “failure”.
Safety concerns
The buses eligible for the scheme usually have a capacity of 49 or 54 depending on their model. Speaking to #Khabarlive, most conductors, drivers, and TGSRTC officials reported each bus ferrying an average of 80 passengers at a time. Some reported carrying over double the capacity, transporting over 120 people a trip.
Driving the Hyderabad-Yadagirigutta route since 2009, Ashok (name changed) reported that drivers struggle to balance the vehicle when they overload passengers. “It even becomes hard to apply brake sometimes,” he pointed at the safety aspect.
“This entire route is crowded. On average, these buses carry about 70-odd people at a time despite having a capacity between 49-54,” a conductor en route Bibinagar said. Sai Chaitanya, a transport researcher, who has done extensive research on public transportation in Hyderabad said commuters have been feeling that the frequency of buses has come down.
“It is not correct. As the buses get more crowded and it tends to take a longer time, making people feel that the frequency has gone down,” he explained. “There is a service-level benchmark which specifies that there should be at least 60 buses per lakh people to ensure an A-rank service,” he said, adding that Telangana’s fleet strength has remained stagnated for a decade.
“It means that Hyderabad itself needs 7,200 buses to cater to the city’s needs. The current fleet of 2,800 pales in comparison,” he said. “In fact, before 2014, there were about 10,000 buses in Telangana. However, soon after, about 1,000 got decommissioned because of their age,” he continued.
“Telangana has ordered about 800 buses, out of which 100 have been delivered. Unfortunately, it’s not an addition to the fleet. It is just to replace the buses that are soon to be decommissioned,” he added. He noted that Karnataka, with 6,500 BMTC buses was doing much better, and it has added 1,200 buses including replacements. #hydkhabar
About The Author
