Akola woman with NCMC card charged full ST bus fare, conductor cites no network

A gap between the claim of half-price ST bus tickets under the Mahila Samman Yojana and the reality on the ground has surfaced in Akola. A woman passenger on bus number MH-14/NP-4150, plying from Murtizapur to Daryapur, had an NCMC card. She was still asked to pay the full ticket instead of the half ticket, with the reason given that there was no network.

The state government has offered a 50 per cent ticket concession for women on ST travel since March 2023. The scheme has brought relief to lakhs of women passengers. But with the NCMC card made a condition for the concession, ordinary women now appear to be bearing the brunt of technical problems. In this case the woman had a valid NCMC card, yet had to pay the full fare solely because there was no network.

The question has been raised that providing the network and keeping the digital ticketing system in order is the responsibility of the ST Mahamandal. Why, then, should women passengers bear the financial burden?

Questions have also been raised, with some anger, about the Mahamandal's functioning. If the 50 per cent concession for women is announced but the full fare is charged on the journey, what is the use of the scheme? If the technical system fails, should the ordinary passenger bear the penalty? When the NCMC card was made mandatory, was the problem caused by the lack of network not considered? The benefit of the Mahila Samman Yojana should not remain limited to paper or advertisements but should actually reach every eligible woman passenger.

In view of this, a demand has been made that the ST Mahamandal take cognisance of the matter and investigate the incident on the bus concerned. It has also been demanded that if there is a technical fault in the machine, women be given the 50 per cent concession.

It has also been asked what alternative arrangement the Mahamandal provided for technical failures when it made the NCMC card mandatory. If the bus machine cannot get a network, why is there no provision to verify the woman's eligibility and issue a concessional ticket? If the benefit of a government scheme is being denied because of a glitch in the digital system, the matter is serious.

The woman had to take a full ticket because the bus had no network. The conductor gave this as the reason for issuing the full ticket.