(a) the challenges/issues faced by women/girls while using public transport along with the steps being taken by the Government to overcome such issues;
(b) whether the authorities have taken appropriate measures to ensure safe and comfortable public transport for women;
(c) if so, the details thereof along with the funds allocated in this regard; and
(d) if not, the reasons therefor?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)
(a) to (d) : Government of India attaches highest importance to the safety and security of women using the public transport system. Government has taken a number of initiatives in this direction over the past few years.
A notification has been issued under the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988 mandating provision of Vehicle Location Tracking (VLT) device and emergency buttons in all Public Service Vehicles registered on or after 1stJanuary, 2019 as measures to overcome the challenges/ issues being faced by women/ girls while using public transport. Timelines for implementation of VLT and emergency buttons in vehicles registered upto 31st December, 2018 are to be decided by the State Governments.
The Empowered Committee (EC) of officers constituted under Nirbhaya Fund has appraised and recommended a number of projects of Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Road Transport and Highways for funding under Nirbhaya Fund that are essentially meant for safety and security of women using public transport system. The details of such projects are as under:
(i) Abhaya Project of Transport Department, Andhra Pradesh : The proposal is for installation of Internet of Things (IoT) device and related software in public transport vehicles. An amount of Rs.138.49 Crore has been appraised by EC for implementation of the project.
(ii) Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC), Govt. of Uttar Pradesh : The proposal includes 50 ladies pink Buses, CCTV, Panic buttons and controllers on 12500 buses, 24 Interceptors and Advocacy/ Advertisements/ Awareness Campaign. An amount of Rs.83.50 Crore has been appraised by EC for implementation of the project.
(iii) Women’s Safety Initiative by Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), Govt. of Karnataka : BMTC proposal includes training women for Heavy passenger Vehicle (HPV) licenses, advocacy, advertisement and awareness campaign on women’s safety, women lounges at important stations, CCTV surveillance cameras for 1000 buses, gender sensitization and women safety protocol training for ground staff, increase in the number of Sarathi Squads/ Mobile Police Patrol Vehicles, mobile application to improve functionalities on women safety and passenger information display in bus stops. An amount of Rs.56.06 Crore has been appraised by EC for implementation of the project.
(iv) Customization, deployment and management of State-wise Vehicle Tracking Platform: The proposal is for customization, deployment and management of State-wise Vehicle Tracking Platform for safety & enforcement with AIS 140 specification. An amount of Rs.465.02 Crore has been appraised by EC for implementation of the project. Guidelines for the same have been finalized and uploaded on the website of Ministry of Road Transport & Highways.
(v) Emergency Response Support System (ERSS): ERSS is a pan-India, single, internationally recognized number, i.e. 112 based system for various emergencies, with computer aided dispatch of field resources to the location of distress. ERSS has been operationalized in 28 States/UTs. An amount of Rs.321.69 Crore has been appraised by EC for implementation of the project.
(vi) Safe City Projects : Safe City projects have been approved in 8 cities in phase I. Safe City project involves development of critical assets in urban areas including infrastructure, technology adoption and capacity building in community through awareness programmes. An amount of Rs.2919.55 Crore has been appraised by EC for implementation of the project.
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways had also formulated a committee to formulate taxi policy guidelines to promote urban mobility. The guidelines were circulated to all the States/UTs vide letter dated 15.12.2016. These guidelines would help provide the States with an overarching, common detailed framework to formulate detailed regulations for taxi operations that are to be followed by Aggregators, Radio Taxi operators and Agents.
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