Cleared: dk
Hyderabad: Procurement of new buses and implementation of Mahalakshmi free bus travel scheme for women were discussed at a review meeting held by transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Saturday.
During the meeting, TGSRTC officials presented a detailed report of the scheme, citing that so far 111 crore zero-fare tickets were issued, helping women save ₹3,747 crore. The minister highlighted that the scheme significantly improved TGSRTC's occupancy ratio from 69% to 94%, indicating its success and popularity.
Acknowledging the rising passenger demand, the minister instructed officials to expedite the procurement of new buses. Since Dec 2023, TGSRTC had added 1,389 new buses to its fleet with the support of the state govt, he noted. The state govt also plans to allocate rental buses to women's self-help groups in the districts of Mahabubnagar, Karimnagar, Khammam, and Warangal. Each mandal federation in these districts would receive a rental bus each.