The Uber cabbie incident in Delhi has sparked safety concerns all over the country. Following this, police are involved in different background checks and other activities to ensure that the cab drivers all through the country have a clean profile.
But, in Kerala a different approach has been initiated with over 40 cabs painted in pink plying the roads. It appears like this step will put a stop to those problems associated with women’s safety. A cab company called She-Taxi runs this service and it employs only women drivers and the firm is now looking to expand its presence in cities such as Mumbai andDelhi.
Other companies that also run women centric cabs are GCabs and Priyadarshini employing women drivers and they are also aimed in expanding their operations to other states across the nation.
Besides employing women drivers to ensure safety of the commuters, they have equipped their cabs with GPS and GPRS. Also, GCabs and She-Taxi have separate alarms for the driver and passenger in the cabs that connect to respective call centers when in need.
Furthermore, Bangalore Political Action Committee (BPAC) with members including Kiran Mazumdar Shaw and TV Mohandas Pai has conceptualized “Gulabi Auto” project that is an auto rickshaw service operated by women. This initiative is under consideration by the government by Karnataka.
Regarding this, Revathy Ashok, CEO and Managing Trustee, BPAC stated that safety is a major issue and this project will also solve the problems by providing livelihood to women that will empower them.
BPAC has also proposed a new concept of Durga alarms in autos and buses that ply all overBangaloreto the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corportation (BMTC) and it has been agreed for the pilot attempt. The Durga alarms can be used by women passengers traveling via buses and autos when they are unsafe or under threat. These alarms work like an ambulance siren to alert those who are on the roads.
She added thatBangaloreprobably has the largest working women population. Hence, such features would be very helpful for those who work late in the night to feel safe on road.
