Free travel for women in buses from 15 August

Bringing cheer to women in the State, AP Revenue Minister Anagani Satya Prasad has announced in a tweet that the much-awaited scheme – free bus travel for the fair sex – will be launched on 15 August 2024. The Minister released a poster on it on 16 July.

With the authorities concerned, who have been entrusted with the task of studying the implementation of the scheme in the neighbouring States of Telangana and Karnataka, submitting their report, decks are cleared for free travel for women in the State. Free trips for women in RTC buses was one among the six guarantees promised by the TDP during its election campaign.

The populist scheme was first launched in Delhi and other States like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Punjab, Karnataka and Telangana have followed it.
Along with it, the State government is reportedly planning to revive ‘Anna canteens’ the same day (15 August), when the free bus travel scheme will be launched. The ‘Anna canteens’, where the poor used to get breakfast, lunch and dinner at a cost of just Rs 5 each, were closed when the YSRCP came to power in 2019.

The Telugu Desam Party, during its election campaign, promised to revive the canteens and now its government is set to fulfil it. In Visakhapatnam, as many as 26 ‘Anna canteens‘ were opened in 2018 in phases.

It is learnt that AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu will launch the free bus travel scheme for women in Visakhapatnam, besides relaunch of ‘Anna canteens’.

This article is written by Senior Journalist Lakkoju Nagesh Babu.

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