The Uttar Pradesh government is set to introduce a scheme offering free travel on state-run buses for women above 60 years of age, fulfilling a key BJP promise made during the 2022 assembly elections.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is expected to launch the scheme at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan in Lucknow on August 26, ahead of Raksha Bandhan, according to officials.
“The CM will launch the free travel scheme for women above 60 years of age here on Wednesday at a function planned as a big event,” a senior government official said.
The scheme was included in the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) manifesto, Sankalp Patra, for the assembly elections. In the manifesto, the party had promised providing free travel to women above 60 years in public transport across Uttar Pradesh.
The transfer is also believed to be an attempt to court female voters ahead of the assembly elections which are scheduled early next year.
Key Highlights:
- Uttar Pradesh to provide free state bus travel for women above 60 years
- Yogi Adityanath will launch the scheme on August 26, ahead of Raksha Bandhan
- The scheme is expected to cost around Rs 330 crore, with Aadhaar used for age verification
In 2022, the BJP had promised to implement this populist agenda, which is expected to add another burden of around ₹330 crore on the state government which will be reimbursed by UP State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) for the revenue it had lost due to free ticketing for senior women.
According to a UPSRTC survey, around 20 lakh passengers travel in its buses daily, with women accounting for nearly 33% of the ridership. “Our survey found nearly one lakh women above 60 years of age travelling in state-run buses every day,” a senior UPSRTC official said.
The officials said the state government has already budgeted for the scheme in the supplementary budget passed by the UP assembly recently.
The rollout could pose operational challenges for UPSRTC as it currently lacks a foolproof mechanism to verify passengers’ age. “For the time being, conductors and booking centres will use Aadhar as the age identifier while issuing tickets to women above 60 years of age,” the official said. “The government is also preparing detailed rules for implementing the scheme,” he added.
The officials also said that UPSRTC had recommended the government provide free travel facility to women regardless of age so as to remove the need for any strict age identification.
Raksha Bandhan will continue to give free rides to women passengers of all ages, as has been the tradition for a number of years.
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