‘94th Bus Day For Safety of Women’
On the occasion of 94th Bus Day, B.PAC and BMTC came together to build awareness, collect ideas from citizens and encourage more number of women to use public transport.
Transport minister H.M Revanna, chairman Nagaraju Yadav along with B.CLIP civic leaders released the safety posters and handouts and distributed them to the women commuters at Majestic bus stop. Mr. Ponnuraj IAS Managing Director, BMTC, Mr. Prakaash Gowda Director, IPS S&V, BMTC, Chitra Talwar, Director B.SAFE-B.PAC, B.PAC’s B.CLIP leaders and other BMTC officials were present at the program.
Safety of women is imperative to make any stride towards empowering women. The sheer number of women in public places and public transport showcases the progressiveness of the city. In this regard, B.SAFE – B.PAC’s initiative for safety of women and children has been working with various stakeholders to create safe spaces for women.
A whopping 3.5 million women use BMTC every day to commute across Bengaluru city. BMTC has launched a number of initiatives to provide a reliable, easy to use and flexible transport for women. The success of a woman is measured with her empowerment and in turn to achieve it a safer place is required. Safety of women stands first in the stalk of concerns that needs to be resolved. Providing a safer transport system will uplift and build one’s morale in stepping out and making a mark for themselves.
Mr. Nagaraju Yadav welcomed the audience and set the context by introducing the various initiatives taken by BMTC for safety of women. Mr Revanna shared about various initiatives taken by BMTC for safety of women such as direct helpline numbers, Sarathi patrolling vehicles, CCTV cameras in all buses, safety alarms and awareness & gender sensitization program for all staff of BMTC.
BMTC has been awarded Nirbhaya funds to improve the available resources for safety of women. Further, BMTC shall be developing mobile app for safety of women, build women’s lounges in major bus stations and consistently work with commuters and other stakeholders to improve the facilities for safety of women. BMTC shall also train more number of women to be drivers in order to bring in gender inclusivity in BMTC buses.
“Women are making strides in every space. It is our responsibility to ensure safe space for women. We are proud to associate with B.PAC for these initiatives and take this across Bengaluru city”, said Minster Revanna.
BMTC employees curtained the event with a street play to promote safety of women passengers. B.PAC and BMTC and BMTC shall be organizing more such programs across wards in Bengaluru city to build awareness on safety of women and resources available for the same.
