Name: Jyothi.D
Country: India

Year: 2025
Volume: Volume No: 10, Issue No: 2, Year: 2025 (Special Issue)
Page Number: 49-54
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17996305

ABSTRACT:
The Congress government in Karnataka implemented its flagship guarantee schemes, viz., the „Shakti Scheme. The „Shakti‟ scheme is the provision for free intra-state transportation in non-premium bus services of Karnataka State, for women (including „female students, Transgender, and Physical Handicapped) belonging to all domiciles of the state. Its‟ beneficiaries also include females belonging to the age cohort of „6 -12 years‟ and „transgender‟ of all domiciles of Karnataka. This paper intends to analyse the need for and impact of the „Shakti‟ scheme. This paper analyses the socio-economic impact of the „Shakti‟ scheme in the backdrop of the various critical comments received. It examines Karnataka‟s reducing female labour work force participation
and the factors contributing to it. It also makes a note of the nature of women‟s unpaid household labour. It examines the two major factors, viz. economic dependency and economic security. It underscores the various factors obstructing the mobility of women in public places. The Public transport in India is essential for the mobility of hundreds of millions of people, especially low-income and middle income households. The economic burden of transport costs, unsafe travel conditions, and unreliable services hinder their basic access to education, employment, and essential services. the "Shakti Scheme" is an imaginative drive sent off by the Public authority of Karnataka in
11 June 2023. Free travel Scheme is the fruitful execution of comparative plans in Delhi, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, the essential goal of Shakti Plan is to engage ladies by giving them free travel transport facilities. It shows that the Shakti plot has brought about a huge expansion in both ridership and income for every one of the four street transport organizations, including KSRTC BMTC NWSRTC, and KKSRTC.

Key Words: Shakthi Scheme, KSRTC, Households, Free Travel, Public Transport