Free bus ride: religiously women

Adopting Tamil Nadu's DMK and Delhi's Aam Aadmi Party policies for winning popular vote, the newly elected Congress-led government in Karnataka recently rolled out free bus ride for all women folk of the state. KSRTC buses are all full and women folk profusely thanking the new SiddaKumar government.

Religious Temple Tour

But where are they busily going? They all have become suddenly religiously awakened and making trip to all famous temples like Dharmasthsla, Kukke Subrsmanya, Horanadu Anna poorneshwari, Kolluru Mukambika, Gokarna Atmalinga, Shrungeri Sharade, Savadatti Yellamma, Chinchili Mayavva, Ulavi Channa Basavehwara, Male Mahadesheara, Shravana Belagola Gommateshwara, Kudala Sangama and likewise. BJP should also feel happy as all of them are taking pilgrimage tour. Although this Congress Government calls itself secular, its supporters are all indirectly toeing BJP's path of hindutwa.

All the religious places are flooded with women tourists and there is heavy demand for both lodging and boarding. Temple authorities are also taken aback with this sudden, unexpected influx. Especially during weekends devotees fall out is doubled and every facility demands to be doubled but resources are very limited says the organisers. It has also reversed the passengers ratio to 120 women to 40 men.

21 crore Rs spent on 1 crore women

On the first day of the rollout of the Nari Shakti scheme, at least 5.70 lakh women passengers travelled in state-run non-premium buses.The scheme has since seen continued upsurge in women travellers availing themselves of the free bus service. Within just three days of the launching of the scheme, nearly a crore (98,58,518) women travelled free in state-run buses. According to official estimates, the free bus ride has cost the state exchequer Rs 21.06 crore in three days.

On the third day of the scheme, 20.57 lakh women passengers took a free ride in Bengaluru city buses, which cost the government Rs 2.02 crore, according to official figures.As many as 11.09 lakh women travelled in the buses run by the North West Karnataka Road Transport Corporation costing Rs 2.72 crore to the state exchequer, while 5.89 lakh women passengers took a free bus ride with the Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation at an estimated cost of Rs 1.95 crore.

Daily 41 lakh women travellers

The Karnataka government intends to cover 41.8 lakh female passengers daily under the scheme, which may cost the exchequer Rs. 4,051.56 crore a year. According to officials, the government also intends to increase the strength of the buses the KRSTC runs to 15,000. The KRSTC has a fleet of 8113 buses, logging on average 26.79 lakh km daily.

But the free bus ride offered to women of the state has not gone down well with private bus operators. According to reports, private operators plying buses from Bengaluru, which serves towns near the Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu borders such as Mulbagal, Chintamani, Kolar Gold Fields, and Nangali are struggling to attract regular passengers after the government launched the scheme.  In Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts, the position is same. Autorickshas, Ola, Uber taxies also hit badly. They all are reportedly peeved at the government initiative and are mulling strike against the scheme.

Nari Shakti, which many see as a step closer to women empowerment and increasing their participation in the workforce, is the first of the five guarantees the Congress party had promised to the electorate during elections. Karnataka  will require around  Rs. 60,000 crore annually to implement all five guarantees.

It may herald an era of what both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and experts call “freebie politics”, where ruling dispensations must go beyond emotive issues and deliver on poll promises they make to the electorate. If the Karnataka template catches up with ruling parties other than the BJP, it can potentially upset the BJP’s apple cart in coming general elections.

It was the AAP-led government in Delhi which first launched free bus ride scheme in 2019, attracting criticism from almost all quarters. However, the scheme is now being seen as a tool to women empowerment, facilitating women’s increased mobility and work participation. Now women need not depend on their men to escort them from place to place financially. The street shakti sanghas are arranging their trips without the help of men. So, women community feel more freedom financially as well as socially.

(Dr. Mysi Patil is the State Correspondent)