Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has directed that live tracking be made available soon for the free RTC buses running under the name of Stree Shakti for women. He said that the Stree Shakti scheme has been a grand success with the cooperation of women and a lot of awareness among the women of AP. He believed that they will take advantage of whatever schemes the government brings.
CM Chandrababu said that special schemes have been implemented for women since he was the CM of the combined state. He said that if women were provided with financial independence through Dwakra associations, now they have been provided with financial independence through Stree Shakti.
Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu held a high-level review with RTC officials on the Stree Shakti scheme at the State Secretariat. He inquired about the extent to which the occupancy ratio has increased. Are there any difficulties faced in the process of competing for seats in Stree Shakti buses? Details were collected.
Officials explained that the occupancy ratio used to be 68 to 70 percent in the past, but now the buses plying within the limits of 60 depots are getting 100 percent occupancy ratio. They also said that 100 percent occupancy ratio is being recorded in 13 districts. They brought to the attention of the CM that there are no incidents of trouble or confusion for free travel seats in RTC buses.
RTC MD Dwaraka Tirumala Rao explained that women are taking advantage of the free bus facility and are traveling only as much as necessary. The CM ordered that boards be installed in front and behind the 8,458 buses implementing Stree Shakti be easily identified. He thanked the women who are understanding the situation of the state and acting accordingly.
He asked the women to cooperate in the future as they have cooperated so far. He clarified that if the government gets similar support for welfare schemes and development programs, they will work more enthusiastically. He explained that by doing so, they will be able to provide more benefits to the people.
The Chief Minister believed that if the live tracking system is implemented, women will know the bus timings and finalize their travel times accordingly. Officials gave a powerpoint presentation on articulated e-buses. Officials explained that these types of buses will be a middle-level transport system between the existing regular buses and the metro rail.
