With Assembly polls due early next year in the city, the Aam Aadmi Party government is going to make metro and bus travels free for women in Delhi "to encourage them to use public transport".
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, 3 June, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said, "On all DTC buses, cluster buses and metro trains women will be allowed to travel free of cost so that they have a safe travel experience and can access modes of transport which they were not able to, due to high prices.”
“Public transport has been considered the safest mode of travel,” he added.
He also said that women who are able to afford the tickets for buses and metro trains should buy them, making the scheme a voluntary one. Kejriwal also said that the government is looking to implement the decision in the next “2-3 months” and has asked the officers to submit a detailed report within a week.
‘Not Even One Citizen Said It's Bad Idea’: Sisodia
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Tuesday took a bus ride to get feedback from passengers about the Delhi government's proposed free ride for women in public transport, and said he did not find "even one citizen" who opposed the idea.
Sisodia boarded a cluster bus, route number of 623, at the ITO bus stand and asked women passengers their views on the Arvind Kejriwal government's free-ride proposal.
Most women said they feel safe while commuting in public transport rather than in cabs and taxis.
Anubhuti, a student of Maharaja Agrasen College, told the deputy chief minister it was a "very good step" towards the women safety in the national capital. "I have to shell out Rs 1,000 every month on a bus pass. Public transport is better in terms of safety. We feel safe while using public transport," she said, reported PTI.
Another passenger, Gayatri, said she cannot afford commuting in Metro trains that's why she uses buses. "There will be free ride for women (in metro). I will feel safer in Metro trains," she said.
Sisodia said he spoke to more than 50 women and several men in buses seeking to know what they feel about the proposal announced by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday.
"I spoke with more than 50 women & many men in DTC buses to understand what they feel about #FreeMetroForWomen? Not even one citizen said that it's a bad idea. On the contrary, everybody said public transport is more secure for women & it would save them 2-3K rupees per month (sic)," Sisodia tweeted.
Sisodia deboarded at the UPSC bus stand where he spoke to some women there for their feedback, PTI reported.
"I have never travelled in a Metro train, but once the decision is implemented, I will do," Bhagwati, a resident of Najafgarh, told Sisodia.
Anita, a resident of Dwarka, said that commuting in Metro trains costs her much. "I shell out Rs 100 every day on commute. I will save more in buses," she said.
Earlier in the day, Sisodia alleged that BJP does not want the scheme to be implemented. "BJP leaders are misleading people on this issue. They do not want this scheme to be implemented. I want to ask as to why it is doing this?" he asked.
Sisodia also said the AAP government had been working on this proposal for the last two-three months, adding that it will be a good step towards women safety in Delhi.
Manoj Tiwari on Announcement
Reacting to the announcement, Delhi BJP chief and the party’s North East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari said, “Arvind Kejriwal is making a futile attempt to buy voters ahead of state polls.”
“He promised to deploy Marshals for safety of women and panic buttons in buses. It seems he himself is now panicking. We are not opposing the idea but something that couldn't even be started in 52 months, how can it be done in 5-6 months? Kejriwal is only trying to deceive people,” news agency ANI quoted him as saying.
Meanwhile, Transport Department officials have already pointed out that while allowing free travel in Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) and cluster buses run by the Delhi Integrated Multi Modal System(DIMTS) may not be difficult, it will be "challenging" to do so in Metro trains.
The Delhi government and the Centre are 50:50 equity partners in the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
An official pointed out that the Delhi government and the centre's Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry have not been on the same page over several issues related to metro, including fare hike and Phase-IV of the Metro network.
“Besides other factors like technical and financial feasibility of such a move, the persisting disagreements between the two sides may also play a crucial role in going ahead with the proposal for giving free ride to women in Metro trains,” said a senior official.
Chief Minister Kejriwal also claimed that the fixed charge component of power tariff were raised by the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Authority (DERC) last year "without consulting" the Delhi government.
"Next month new tariff is to be fixed. We have asked the DERC to bring back fixed charges to previous levels and they are likely to agree to it," he said.
The monthly fixed charges were raised for domestic consumers having up to 2 KW load from Rs 20 to Rs 125. The Delhi government provides subsidy to such consumers. However, in other categories, consumers pay higher fixed charges.
The hike in fixed charges for other slabs were -- for 2-5 kw, from Rs 35 to Rs 140; 5-15 KW, Rs 45 to Rs 175; 15-25 kw, from Rs 60 to Rs 200; and for more than 25 KW, from Rs 100 to Rs 250.
In the just-concluded Lok Sabha polls, the AAP won only one seat out of over 40 it contested in nine states and Union Territories. The poll results came as a jolt to the party as it builds up for the assembly elections in Delhi early next year.
Stung by the dismal performance, the AAP government swung into action just a day after the Model Code of Conduct was lifted with Chief Minister directing his ministers on May 27 to speed up work on flagship schemes like Mohalla Clinic, procurement of buses and the CCTV project. In Monday’s press conference, Kejriwal also said that starting 8 June, all 2,80,000 CCTV cameras installed in Delhi, will be put to use.
Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Gopal Rai has, however, has dismissed suggestions that the LS poll results would have an impact on Delhi Assembly elections, asserting there is no alternative to Kejriwal in the national capital.
(With inputs from PTI.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)