Shakti gladdens hearts but issues dogging scheme sadden women Premium

Karnataka’s Shakti scheme, which provides free travel for women on State-run buses, will turn one on June 11. Though the scheme has empowered women’s travel, the lack of adequate number of buses and poor connectivity are key concerns. Darshan Devaiah B.P. explores various locales to gauge the scheme’s impact Statewide

Akkayyamma and her 29-year-old daughter Pavithra from Nippani in Belagavi district in North Karnataka travelled approximately 600 km to Kukke Subrahmanya temple in Dakshina Kannada district in the south. They made the journey to perform a special ritual recommended by an astrologer for their family at this temple. But thanks to the Karnataka government’s Shakti scheme that provides free travel for women on State-run buses, they travelled for free.

Thousands of women have been thronging various temples and tourism destinations across Karnataka using the free bus scheme, which turns one on June 11. Akkayyamma, who works as a domestic help in her home town, shared her story, “I come from a poor family with three children. I lost my husband a few years ago. The whole family’s burden is on me now. I’ve been searching for a groom for my elder daughter for the past four years without any success. An astrologer advised us to perform a ritual here.”

Akkayyamma said she had been wanting to visit this temple for the past three years, but couldn’t afford to travel such a long distance. “When the government announced free bus travel for women, I decided to bring my daughter here. After saving some money for accommodation and food, we were able to travel here for free.”

A group of 10 women from Kalaburagi district in North Karnataka, which is visiting various temples in the coastal and South Karnataka regions for the first time, was at the renowned temple town of Dharmasthala in Dakshina Kannada district. “If it weren’t for the Shakti scheme, we would never have been able to visit a distant pilgrimage centre like Dharmasthala,” said Kamala Imdapur, one of the group members.

The team, accompanied by two men, had visited several prominent temples, including Sringeri Sharadamba temple, Udupi Krishna temple, Annapoorneshwari temple at Horanadu, and Kollur Mookambika temple, before arriving at Dharmasthala. They plan to conclude their journey at Kukke Subrahmanya temple before returning to Kalaburagi.

Kamala said, “On this trip, we saved approximately ₹20,000 to ₹30,000 on bus fares for the entire group, which allowed us to stay in good hotels. If we had to pay for the bus tickets, we would have had to rely on cheaper accommodation. The free bus scheme has helped us visit many temples and save money as well.”

During the conversation with Kamala, another group member, Charulatha Gouda Patil, intervened and said, “It wasn’t just accommodation, food was also sorted since all the temples we visited provided Anna Prasada (free meals). Everything is free now.”