In Photos | 'Get Salutes From Passersby': Delhi's Women Bus Drivers Open Up

In conversation with The Quint, DTC's newly inducted women drivers speak about what their job means to them.

After free training provided by the Delhi government, women drivers were inducted into the DTC fleet. Most of them were hired in the last six months.

(Photo: Ashna Butani/The Quint) 

"Earlier, other women would question why we were learning how to drive... But now that we have a job with the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), they look up to us. They are inspired, and they want to learn driving, too,” said Komal Choudhury, 23, who hails from Rajasthan's Mundawa.  

Komal is among the 34 women bus drivers in the DTC fleet. After free training provided by the Delhi government, the women were inducted into the fleet – and most of them were hired in the last six months.

In conversation with The Quint, the women speak about why they took up the job, what it means to them, and how their employment is changing one gender stereotype at a time.  

Anita Kumari is among the 34 women bus drivers in the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) fleet. After free training provided by the Delhi government, the women hired – and most of them inducted into the fleet in the last six months. Anita, 29, who drives from the Sukhdev Vihar bus depot, said, “Before this, I was working with a private taxi company near the airport. I changed jobs because the salary is higher here. Customers often ask me why I'm working as a bus driver and what my husband does, and whether my husband is okay with this job. But I do not answer such questions.” A single mother and survivor of domestic abuse, Anita says she took up the job to take care of her three children.

Anita started working as a bus driver in September 2022. “When I got my heavy vehicle license, my mother was shocked. But when my parents saw me in the bus, their mindset changed. My father, a rickshaw driver, followed my bus the first time he saw me driving it and screamed, ‘Yeh dekho, meri bitiya bus chala rahi hai!’ (look, that is my daughter driving the bus!). He was in tears that day, and so was I.”  

The women have a group on WhatsApp called DTC Driver Family. On the group, they coordinate timings and address, and even their grievances, foremost among them being the lack of toilets on the road for women.

"Over the course of time, attitudes have changed. Sometimes, cyclists and other drivers on the road tell us we can’t drive. But sometimes, people give us a thumbs-up sign, or a salute on the road. That means a lot to us,” said 23-year-old Komal Choudhury. She took up the job to sustain her livelihood, while preparing for BEd, which is a teacher training course. Hailing from Rajasthan's Mandawa, she wants to study further.

“Most of the people who sit in the buses nowadays are women. The first few days, men would not even sit in the bus because it had a woman driver. Now, they do not bother much,” said V Sarita, who has been driving a bus for eight years now, and was one of the first drivers in DTC's fleet. She had moved from Telangana to Delhi eight years ago to find a job. 

Sharmila, 35, used to work as a cook for the midday meal scheme in schools till a few months ago. While she prefers this job, it leaves her with little time for her children. She travels from Charkhi Dadri in Haryana to her bus depot in Peeragarhi every day. She has to leave her home at around 4 am and she gets back only by 8 pm.

“One of the best things about the job is that they did not require an educational background or any other limitations. Around 40 of us were given free training in March. After that, we heard about the vacancies and filled up the forms. Soon after that, we got a message telling us that we have been hired. Those who did not get hired with the DTC are now driving private buses but at least they picked up the skill for free,” Anita remarked. In the photo, women drivers can be spotted at the Sarojini Nagar bus depot. 

The women drivers say that their lives would be more stable if they were permanent employees. They are currently hired through a contract, where they get paid on the basis of kilometres driven. They earn approximately Rs 15,000-16,000 a month, and do not get any leaves.  

When asked why they took up driving, the women respond in unison, "majboori se" or “out of compulsion. But now, they say that they realise why it is important for them to be on the streets. “Since we have been on the roads, women feel safer to come out and travel by bus. In fact, some of us see the same faces every day. There are some women who wait for a long time to get on our bus, only to get off at the next stop to buy milk or vegetables," Sarita said.