- Delhi launches Saheli Smart Cards for free women’s bus travel
- Cards valid across all DTC and Cluster buses
- New Automated Vehicle Testing Station to enhance road safety
The Delhi Chief Minister, Rekha Gupta, announced one of the major steps for the empowerment of women and inclusive mobility on Thursday-the launching of Saheli Smart Cards that offer free bus travel to all women and transgender residents of Delhi aged 12 years and above. This travel card will be personalized, holding the name and photograph of its holder, and will remain valid across all DTC and Cluster buses, thereby ensuring safe, dignified, and affordable public transport access to lakhs of Delhi women.
"Mobility is empowerment," said CM Gupta while depositing the cornerstone for a new fully Automated Vehicle Testing Station (ATS) in the Nand Nagri Depot. "This initiative represents not only a transportation update, but a powerful symbol of delhi more transparent, inclusive and friendly to women."
Saheli Smart Card would offer services to girls going to school, working women, housewives, and elderly women who face economic hindrances that curb the freedom of movement of women and participation in public life. To the transgender community of the city, it offers equal treatment of dignified travel - a giant step in the direction of inclusivity.
Alongside the mobility scheme, the CM announced that forthcoming road safety plans include the ATS emerging at a cost of ₹10 crore. The testing facility, being fully digital, shall test more than 72,000 vehicles a year free of human intervention, thus ensuring transparency, effectiveness, and less pollution. Currently, Delhi has only one operational ATS in Jhuljhuli, operating with limited capacity.
For the enhancement of infrastructure, a second ATS is imminent at the DTC Tehkhand Depot in South-East Delhi. These would relieve considerable pressure from commercial vehicle owners and will particularly upgrade public safety standards.
Transport Minister Pankaj Singh noted that the new ATS centres would generate an income of ₹3 crore per annum for the DTC while making the roads safer.
The move, though, has been damned by the AAP, alleging that the BJP government is winding back welfare schemes under the pretext of fighting corruption, including Mohalla Clinics and the earlier Pink Ticket program.
Despite political sparring, Saheli's smart card stands out as a reference initiative that places the mobility and dignity of women in the forefront of Delhi’s governance.
