Hyderabad, Sep 10 (IANS): More than 83 crore women travelled in RTC buses in Telangana so far free of cost since the introduction of the Mahalakshmi scheme and this helped them save Rs 2,840 crore, the state government said on Tuesday.

During a review meeting on Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC), Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar briefed Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy about the implementation of the Mahalakshmi scheme.

He said 83.42 crore women travelled free of cost on RTC buses and this helped women save Rs 2,840.71 crore. The government has been implementing the scheme successfully since December 2023. This facility is available in 7,292 RTC buses.

The Chief Minister inquired about the occupancy rate in the buses under the Mahalakshmi scheme

In the PowerPoint presentation, the Transport Minister explained that the number of women coming to hospitals in Hyderabad from various districts has increased. He also showed the articles published in the newspapers on the successful implementation of the Mahalakshmi scheme in the presentation.

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy ordered the TGSRTC officials to prepare the plans for the purchase of new buses to meet the growing demand for public transportation in the state. The Chief Minister suggested to the RTC authorities to take into consideration the demand for bus travel and new travel routes before purchasing the buses.

The TGSRTC officials briefed the Chief Minister about the utilisation of funds from various banks, the Employees’ Provident Fund and pending dues to be paid to the retired employees. In all, the debts accumulated to the tune of Rs 6,332 crore for the RTC.

In view of the high interest rate on the loans borrowed from the banks, the Chief Minister asked the officials to conduct a study on reducing the interest rates and restructuring the debts.

Chief Minister Revanth Reddy wanted the debt burden on the Corporation to be gradually reduced. Officials informed the Chief Minister that the RTC is earning profits with the increase in occupancy rate and the reimbursement paid by the government for the Mahalakshmi scheme.

Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari, Chief Minister's Secretaries Chandrasekhar Reddy, Shanawaz Qasim, Transport Department Special Chief Secretary Vikas Raj, TGSRTC MD Sajjanar and other officials attended the meeting.