Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has clarified that the government has not received any proposal to revisit the ‘Shakti’ scheme, which offers free bus travel for women. This statement comes after Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar claimed some women have expressed a desire to pay for their rides. The scheme, one of the Congress government’s five guarantee programs, has seen over 311 crore free rides and cost the state over ₹7,500 crore.
The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is planning to raise bus fares by up to 20% to compensate for significant financial losses. The losses are attributed primarily to the Shakti scheme, which offers free travel for women in Karnataka. KSRTC officials warn that without a fare increase, the corporation will not be able to sustain its operations.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was presented with a garland made entirely of free bus tickets by a first-year law student named MA Jayashree during an election campaign in Arasikere. Jayashree expressed her gratitude for the state government’s Shakti scheme, which provides free travel to women on government buses. She had been saving all of her free tickets with the intention of making a garland for the Chief Minister.
