School and college-going girls, who used to produce their admission tickets to get yearly bus passes, need not buy passes henceforth, stated a report in The New Indian Express.

They can travel by state-run buses for free under the Shakti scheme. An official order in this regard is expected soon, according to official sources.

Like other women passengers, girl students should get Shakti smart cards. Applications for such cards will be received soon, the sources said.

"Zero" tickets
They said conductors of state-run buses have been directed to issue "zero" tickets to girl students. If they have purchased passes for 2023-24, they will be allowed to travel on those routes and conductors have been directed not to issue "zero" tickets to them. Conductors have also been instructed to issue "zero" tickets to girl students travelling on routes that have not been mentioned in their bus passes, they added.

The sources said there is no provision for a refund of bus pass fee paid by girl students. School and college-going boys will now be allowed to travel by state-run buses by producing passes issued for the last academic year (2022-23) till June 30. They should get new passes through the Seva Sindhu portal from July 1.

The number game
On June 20, 17.89 lakh women travelled by the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) buses and the total ticket amount exempted under the Shakti scheme was Rs 2.27 crore. The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) recorded 17.46 lakh passengers and the exemption was Rs 5.21 crore. The North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) recorded 14.47 lakh passengers and the exemption was Rs 3.59 crore. KKRTC registered 8.05 lakh passengers and the total exemption was Rs 2.57 crore.