amil Nadu’s expanded ‘Vetri Payanam’ free bus travel scheme for women is scheduled to be launched by Chief Minister S. Joseph Vijay on October 2, with final preparations reviewed at a meeting held at the Secretariat under his chairmanship. The expanded scheme will cover 12,692 government buses operating across specified urban, suburban and hill routes.
At present, women can travel free of charge on ordinary city buses operated by seven state transport corporations and on ordinary hill buses operating up to 40 km. Under the expanded ‘Vetri Payanam’ scheme, the facility will cover Express, LSS and Deluxe buses operating in metropolitan and urban areas, Mofussil Ordinary buses, and ordinary hill buses operating beyond 40 km. A total of 12,692 buses, representing 69 per cent of the planned fleet of the seven transport corporations, will be brought under the scheme.
The expanded services are scheduled to account for 1,65,312 daily trips, or 85 per cent of the total 1,94,649 planned trips. According to the government, around 84.32 lakh women are expected to benefit directly from the scheme every day. The expansion will therefore extend free travel to additional categories of government buses beyond the services currently covered.
Electronic ticketing machine integration work for the scheme has been completed. Testing and verification were scheduled to be completed by September 25, followed by a trial run on September 27, as part of the preparations for the October 2 launch.
The source also states that by-elections have been announced for the Madurantakam and Dharapuram Assembly constituencies and the Model Code of Conduct is in force. Consequently, implementation of the scheme in Chengalpattu and Tiruppur districts will take place only after the election-related restrictions are withdrawn.
The government has stated that the expanded service will enable women students to travel to colleges located farther from their homes, while working women and those travelling for medical and essential needs will also be able to use the eligible buses without paying fares.
S. Joseph Vijay, A. Vijay Tamilan Parthiban, M. Saikumar, M.A. Siddiq, Ila. Nirmalraj, Secretariat
12,692 buses, 1,65,312 daily trips, about 84.32 lakh women beneficiaries each day, 69 per cent of buses, 85 per cent of trips
Expansion to Express, LSS, Deluxe and Mofussil Ordinary buses, inclusion of ordinary hill buses operating beyond 40 km
Seven state transport corporations, ETM integration completed, September 25 verification target, September 27 trial run, October 2 launch
The government has stated that the ‘Vetri Payanam’ scheme will provide women across Tamil Nadu with wider access to fare-free public transport from October 2.
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