On board Delhi’s buses, here’s who working-class women availing free transport support this election

In the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the AAP government launched the ‘Pink Ticket’ scheme which lets women travel for free on Delhi’s buses. In November last year, the government claimed that more than 150 crore pink tickets have been distributed by the Delhi Transport Coporation in the five years since the scheme was launched.

With another election approaching, The Indian Express takes a ride on four buses and travels along with the women, speaking to them about how the scheme has helped, the issues they are facing, and who they’ll likely support on February 5.

‘Why not use something which govt provides for free?’

The Outer Mudrika Seva (Uttam Nagar Terminal to Nehru Place Terminal) blue bus glides across West Delhi, through East Delhi and Shahdara before terminating in South Delhi, picking up people from all walks of life.

Anita boards the bus with a group of six women, all domestic workers. “All of us go to work in the same bus and get off at different stops… Initially, we wouldn’t talk to each other but we realised we all do the same work… so, we became friends,” says a beaming Anita as the group congregates near the back.

“Women had been asking the government for a bus scheme for years. It’s a blessing they got it done before the last elections,” says Soniya (29), who works as a domestic worker in Lajpat Nagar.

She explains how faraway places suddenly became accessible to her. “Pehle ghar ke aas paas hi jaate they, ab toh har hafte zoo yaa park ke liye hum nikal jaate hai (Earlier, we would go to places nearby, now every week we visit a park or the zoo),” she says to laughter.

“Unko kya, bike uthao aur nikal pado. Hum se dus sawaal puche bina nahi jaane dete… (It’s so easy for men — they can take their bikes and go anywhere they want. They don’t let us leave the house before questioning us),” says Binita (25), whose stop comes first at Yamuna Vihar.

But why don’t take the Metro? 

Says Soniya, “Our area doesn’t have a Metro yet… the closest is 5 km away. Going to Lajpat Nagar every day would be expensive… Agar sarkar muft mein suvidha de rahi hai fir kyun nahi (Why not use something which the government provides for free)…”

The talk turns to politics. Anita says she voted for the AAP earlier but changed her mind in the last assembly elections when she voted for the BJP. “Humaare area ki haalat bohot kharab hai (the state of our area is pretty bad)… some people don’t get the free water and electricity promised to them… when they go to any leader or officer, they’re told they don’t have the right papers,” she says.

Her friends disagree with her. “Kejriwal has done a lot of good work for the people. Where else will you find someone who wants to help jhuggiwalas like us? Everyone only gives empty promises before elections…,” says Lakshmi (43), part of the group.

‘Our lanes are filthy… garbage piles up every day’

When the bus — DTC Route 440 (Ambedkar Nagar Terminal to New Delhi Railway Station) — screeches to a halt for a few minutes at Khanpur Extension at 9 am, it is already bursting at the seams. As the doors open, passengers barrel their way in, eliciting groans and curses from those inside.

The conductor, his bald pate glistening in the soft winter sun and his moustache bristling with irritation, yells at the commuters to move along from his perch near the back door.

Naziya (32), her head covered with a bright red dupatta, says, “Adjust a little, please” to a seated passenger who shoots her an annoyed look before yielding a minuscule space for her. Naziya sighs as she squeezes into the seat. She travels every day to Kalkaji and Greater Kailash to work as a domestic worker.

The nearest station for her is an auto ride away, yet she chooses to commute by bus.

“… I earn around Rs 15,000,” she says, adding, “… If I take a non-AC bus, it would cost me Rs 10 to Rs 15 one way (before the free ticket scheme). Now I save around Rs 1,000 every month.”

Asked what she’d use the money on instead, she says, “Zindagi ki zarooratein kabhi kam hoti hai kya? (Is there any end to the demands of life?) Sometimes, I use them for groceries, but most of the time I give them to my two kids… they trouble me a lot to buy them pizza, burgers, momos…”

She then lists complaints in her area. “Our lanes are filthy… garbage piles up for days and during monsoons, it’s a nightmare to try and walk on the streets… maine toh koi badlav nahi dekha (I haven’t seen any changes),” she says.

However, she will vote for AAP. “What choice do I have?” she asks.

Her journey is short — around half an hour — but it is difficult. People fall over each other when the driver slams the brakes and Naziya offers to hold a woman’s toddler when she sees her struggling to maintain her balance with one hand while holding her child with another.

“Maar hi dalenge (They’ll kill us at this rate),” the woman mutters as Naziya nods in agreement.

When Naziya reaches her stop, she hands the child back to his mother and tells her, “Sit here, quickly.” The meager space is seamlessly transferred between the two women.

‘I use the bus when I’m running low on money at the month end’

On most days, by the time Kirti (19), a second-year DU student, boards DIMTS Route 448 (Hamdard Nagar to Punjabi Bagh Terminal) from Saket, she can find a place to sit. The stuffy crowds from the morning dissipate around 11 am.

“I can stand without being pushed around… but on days I have to reach my campus early, the bus is so crowded that I have to make my way to the door a few stops before I reach, otherwise I’ll miss my stop,” she says.

Her troubles don’t end there. “My guy friends have had their wallets stolen and after dark some men will try to misbehave… that’s why I like travelling by metro… I usually travel by bus when I’m running low on money at the end of the month,” she says.

‘Against freebies… govt should focus on skill building’

While most domestic workers heartily advocated voting for Kejriwal, a duo of college-going girls seemed unaffected by the policy. “I don’t know how free bus rides would convince me to vote for AAP,” says Tanya (20), a third-year DU student who was travelling from Nehru Place to Munirka in bus 764 (Nehru Place to Dhansa Stand Najafgarh).

“I’m against freebies… I think the government should focus on skill building,” she adds. While she refused to elaborate on which party would get her vote, she said she’d vote “for development”.

Outside, as the bus halts for a few minutes, the bus stand glows with the bright pink campaign poster put up by Congress, promising Rs 2,500 a month to every woman if it wins. When asked whether the dole money scheme offered to women by all three parties could tempt them, Tanya’s friend, Aditi (20) piped up, saying, “No, that scheme is for women who need it… it’s not for us.”