Andhra Pradesh's ‘free bus ride for women' should set a benchmark, says Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu
Taking stock of the Super Six scheme of free travel for women in APSRTC buses in a review meeting on Saturday, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu told the officials to ensure adequate availability of buses, keeping in view the likely surge in occupancy after its scheduled launch on August 15.
Mr. Naidu suggested that new buses be procured, or hired if required, while ordering that all buses that might be needed for the APSRTC's fleet in the future should be electric vehicles, and the extent to which the existing buses could be converted to electric buses should be studied. All buses should be fitted with GPS devices, he added.
Mr. Naidu said the promises made to people at the time of elections ought to be kept in spite of the financial burden entailed by them, and, in the same vein, stressed the need for fiscal prudence, saying that every single rupee was valuable.
He exhorted the APSRTC officials to explore new revenue streams, reduce expenditure, and improve operational efficiency, and highlighted the importance of cleanliness on all premises of the public carrier and in the buses.
Further, Mr. Naidu advised the officials to examine whether it was feasible to operate buses through battery swapping as it would be cost effective, and to evaluate the operation of battery-operated and non-battery buses, and private management of service stations.
The officials told the Chief Minister that 2,536 additional buses were required for the free travel scheme, and the cost was estimated to be ₹996 crore.
It was expected that women could make 889 million trips annually under the scheme from the present 430.60 million. As on date, Delhi, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Telangana were offering free bus travel to women, and Andhra Pradesh should set a benchmark thereof, Mr. Naidu added.
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