Assam Gets Its First Fleet of Pink Autos Run Exclusively By Women, For Women

Guwahati: Thirteen fearless women are all set to create a record – these first women drivers can now be seen crisscrossing the beautiful roads of Bongaigaon town in Assam, ferrying passengers in freshly painted pink autos.

Pink Auto Rickshaw Service, run exclusively for women and children, is already operational in Delhi, Surat, Mumbai, Jharkhand and Orissa. On Wednesday, the service was launched in Assam.

It is a dream fulfilled for these 13 women, made possible by the city mission management unit under National Urban Livelihoods Mission. While 10 pink rickshaws were donated by the Bongaigaon Refinery, three more were purchased by a local self-help group with loans from a nationalised bank.

Purnima Paul Das, 36, who used to work as domestic help in Bongaigaon for past two decades, feels confident of her new identity, “At the beginning, I was nervous. But now it’s normal to drive this rickshaw. I no longer have to work in households for a livelihood,” she said.

A women driver ferries passengers in Bongaigaon town in Assam. (Photo: News18)

Purnima and her husband Ratan Das, a local vegetable seller, could only manage to earn about Rs 2,000 a month. The couple lost their only son in an accident.

Kusumbor Choudhury, City Project Officer, CMMU told News 18, “These women will now be able to earn at least Rs 10,000 every month. Initially, they will drive till 6 in the evening.”

After being trained for two months, Anaki Ray (46) feels proud to be a rickshaw driver. “Initially, we trained for 2 hours from 6am every day. Later, it was extended to 4 hours,” she informed.

Anaki chose to drive a rickshaw because it was becoming increasingly difficult to meet the needs for the family of four. “My husband is a daily wage labourer and my two sons are unemployed. I worked as domestic help for three years, but it hardly met our needs. Taking up this profession, I’ve something to look forward to now,” she said.

The 13 women drivers will be part of the Bongaigaon Auto Union that has lent support to the initiative. Each of these ladies would also be issued a helpline number enabling them to contact the police and ambulance service in times of emergency.