Pink tickets mark Shakti’s 500 crore ridership in Karnataka, chief minister plays bus conductor | Bengaluru News

Bengaluru: Chief minister Siddaramaiah took on the role of a city bus conductor Monday, issuing pink tickets to mark the Shakti scheme crossing the 500-crore ridership milestone. He was joined by his deputy DK Shivakumar, transport minister Ramalinga Reddy, other cabinet colleagues and chief secretary Shalini Rajneesh on the occasion.As part of the event, the chief minister felicitated a woman passenger, Latha P, a resident of Chamarajpet who works in a bag factory, and gifted Ilkal sarees to nearly 30 commuters, including elderly citizens and students. Members of Odala Dhwani, a self-help group that has benefited from the scheme, also presented their products to the ministers as a gesture of gratitude. The group, which brings homemade items like roti and holige from Vijayapura to sell in Bengaluru, credited the scheme with helping them expand their operations.The chief minister explained how his administration implemented the scheme, while Shivakumar reiterated that all five guarantees of the govt would continue despite criticism from opposition parties. “Women who commute daily to their workplaces by bus can save up to Rs 1,000 per month through this free travel facility,” Shivakumar said.To provide free bus travel for women on ordinary and express services, the four road transport corporations have spent Rs 12,699 crore. The RTCs claim that their daily ridership has increased from 85.84 lakh to 1.17 crore since the scheme’s introduction. To meet growing demand, the number of buses in operation has been increased from 23,948 to 26,130 over the past two years. However, while implementing the scheme, RTCs have faced criticism of overcrowding and bus shortages.Reddy said the govt has approved the induction of 5,800 buses, of which 5,049 have already been added to the fleets of the four RTCs. To address staff shortages, 6,700 appointments have been made, and an additional 1,000 people were recruited on compassionate grounds.