Ranchi laps up women-only bus service

RANCHI: On August 19, a student was stopped on the street near her college by hooligans in Ranchi and threatened at knife-point. On March 13, a bunch of city residents rounded up two minors, harassing two schoolgirls physically on the streets near Kishoreganj Chowk. But these happen to be among the few incidents that went on record, as many incidences of catcalling and hooliganism against the city's young girls go unreported every day.


Taking up the issue of women safety, Ranchi Municipal Corporation launched the city's first women-only buses, plying on the 4.2-kilometer route between Kutchery Chowk and Rajendra Chowk, with a goal to make the commuting safer. On the

International

Day of the Girl Child, TOI talked to women and girls using these buses.

"I usually pick up my daughter from her school in Shyamali Colony myself. Earlier, autos or e-rickshaws were the only option, but now, I walk from the school to Rajendra Chowk to take the women-only bus. It is definitely a lot safer. But I haven't yet allowed my daughter to take the bus by herself as their frequency is less and I don't want her to wait at the bus stop alone," said Hindpiri resident Sanober Khatoon.

Harsha Singh, a homemaker from Hinoo, said: "I take an auto to Rajendra Chowk and take the bus from here. The areas in which these buses operate should be diversified and their frequency on this route should be increased so we don't have to wait for long. Right now, I often hop on to regular buses in the daytime. In the evenings, I choose to wait."

A report titled 'WINGS 2018 - A study on the perception of girls' safety in public spaces', conducted by an international organisation, Save The Children, revealed that travelling in public transport exposes women to the highest sense of risk perception across both urban (47%) and rural (40%) areas. Although the numbers don't include

Jharkhand

, they point towards a general sense of mistrust on public transport. With all-women buses, Ranchi is trying to address the issue.

"We initially planned to have an all-woman crew running the bus, but due to lack of candidates, the drivers are currently men. We have posted female conductors on these buses. The number of buses will be increased as per demand, but for now, each of the two buses make a minimum of 12 round trips on the route between 8am and 9pm," said Saurabh Verma, city manager of RMC's transport cell.


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