Increased occupancy, workload: What free bus ride for Telangana women means to drivers, conductors

The concerns raised by TSRTC personnel exposes the gap between the already-stretched available resources and aspirational scheme like Mahalakshmi.

On 26 December, South First caught up with TSRTC bus conductors, drivers, and male passengers in Hyderabad to know how the scheme has fared for them so far.

Unamused bus drivers and conductors 

A driver of the District Express bus at the Jubilee Hills bus stand (JBS), who was about to start on the Karimnagar route said, “The number of women passengers have hugely increased after the scheme’s implementation. It has increased the rush as well. I have to drive as well as issue the tickets and check the ID proof, as a result of which more time is being consumed,” he told South First, on the condition of anonymity.

Women commuters in Bus Number 3 from the MGBS to Osmania Medical College. (Ajay Tomar/South First)

It is mandatory for women citizens of Telangana to show original and valid ID cards to avail a free ride under the Mahalakshmi scheme.

After the implementation of the zero-ticket scheme, the TSRTC stated that the occupancy rate has gone up from 69 percent (till 23 November) to 88 percent.

B Venkatesh (54), a bus conductor who was about to leave for Srisailam, told South First, “With more occupancy, the buses are getting overloaded. The number of seats is a little over 50 but sometimes, the passenger count triples, up to 150. When this happens, it becomes dangerous. Some of the passengers even hang on to the grills of the door. If there is an unfortunate incident, the onus will be on us.”

Another driver M Reddy (42) pointed out to the repair works required in some of the buses to bear the toll of passengers that are rising in number every day.

“Sometimes the passengers even sit on the rack beside the front glass. They even disturb our view of the side mirror,” he lamented, while speaking to South First.

Another concern the TSRTC drivers and conductors shared was that the women passengers are boarding the intra-state buses for local commute. “Sometimes, the women passengers would board the bus and ask to stop at an undesignated stop. These district express buses have fixed halts and if we stop everywhere, it increases the journey time and defeats the sole purpose of an express bus. Other daily passengers also get annoyed by this,” a driver told South First.

Several drivers and conductors complained that the workload has significantly increased since the Mahalakshmi scheme’s launch. “Our rest hours have reduced due to the shortage of staff. Most of us are coming and going without much rest. It will be a respite if the recruitment of new staff starts soon,” G Jyothi, a conductor, told South First.

Also Read: First marred by Ola, Uber and now hit by Mahalakshmi scheme, auto drivers in Hyderabad are miffed

Seat occupation, a vital contest

Reports suggested quarrel among women passengers over seat occupation. A video of two women engaging in fist fight in the Bhadrachalam town went viral on social media.

Women commuters displaying zero ticket at the launch of Mahalakshmi scheme. (Supplied)

The front rows of the TSRTC buses, around 13 to 14 seats, are reserved for women passengers.

“Seat occupation has become a contested issue after the launch of the Mahalakshmi scheme. Apart from their reserved seats, women passengers also occupy the seats in the end rows which agitate other regular passengers, particularly men,” M Mohanlal, a conductor at Cantonment Bus Depot (CBD), told South First.

He added that while the passenger rush used to initially be in the morning and evening hours before the scheme’s launch, it has now turned into a day-long affair.

“Mostly, the rush is throughout the day, but between 8-10 am and 5-9 pm, it becomes unbearable on most of the days,” said Mohanlal.

Almost all the drivers and conductors put forth that the fleet of buses should be augmented by the TSRTC as early as possible.

The TSRTC has a fleet of 9,217 (2,800 in Hyderabad city and the rest inter and intra-state buses) and about 50,000 staff on its roll. On 18 December, the Corporation also issued a tender for hiring of private vehicles to raise the fleet.

Reports suggested that the TSRTC has also geared up for inducting 1,050 new diesel buses including Pallevelugu, Express and a few AC buses. Of this, 200 diesel buses will be made available by Makar Sankranti festival (15 January 2024), the Corporation said on 22 December.

Adding to this, the TSRTC also plans to introduce 1,050 electrical buses (550 on intercity routes in rural areas and 500 on intra-city routes in Hyderabad city) by March next year to meet the additional load.

Telangana CM A Revanth Reddy launched the Mahalakshmi scheme on 9 December. (Supplied)

“The rush is more on pilgrimage routes such as Vemulawada, Yadagirigutta, and Srisailam since the implementation of the scheme. Earlier, there used to be 80-90 percent occupancy rate on these routes but now, it has peaked to 100-110 percent. We have increased the bus frequency to Yadagirigutta to every 10 minutes but still, more buses are required,” a TSRTC official told South First, adding that almost all the routes in the state are overloaded.

He added that the occupancy ratio has reversed in terms of gender. “Earlier, the ratio used to be 70 percent men and 30 women, approximately. Now, it has reversed, with 70 percent women and 30 percent men.”

Also Read: Telangana women cheer Mahalakshmi zero-ticket scheme — but some are cautious

Other concerns

Harshit Dixit (20), an undergrad student, said, “Several times, I have seen women passengers forcing a male passenger to vacant an unreserved seat. It has happened to me as well. I preferred staying quite as I did not see any point in arguing.”

He asked why there was no fare concession for college-going male commuters. “It is good that the government has taken a positive step for women upliftment. But what have college-going men done? Our fares could also have been slashed,” he opined.

N Devesh, an IT employee at Hitech City and a daily commuter, who was at the Panjagutta bus stand, echoed the drivers’ and conductors’ voices.

“Lately, women occupy most of the seats in the bus. They also get down at random stops causing inconvenience to others. Due to this, the journey time also increases as I have to leave for office 15 to 20 minutes earlier,” he told South First.

A city-based independent transport activist noted that while the Corporation is aiming to procure new buses, it also needs to keep a check on the buses that will be decamped.

“In the next two years, nearly 900 buses are supposed to retire. Till 2019, Hyderabad used to have a strength of around 3,800 buses but now it is only 2,800. The TSRTC’s network needs to increase. They need to procure new the buses to increase the strength and not just replace the outdated ones. Otherwise, how can they expect to increase the fleet?” the activist asked.

Also Read: A government officer is challenging the zero-ticket scheme for Telangana women. Here’s why