Free bus travel for women: State releases Rs 12.5 cr to SBSTC
The Statesman | 2 June 2026
The South Bengal State Transport Corporation (SBSTC) will require approximately Rs 5.5 crore per month to meet the cost of the newly introduced free bus travel scheme for women, officials said.
The state transport department has already released Rs 12.5 crore as the first instalment to compensate the corporation for the scheme’s expenditure. A similar amount has reportedly been allocated to the North Bengal State Transport Corporation.
The estimate has been prepared on the basis of current ridership and operational costs across SBSTC routes in south Bengal. Officials expect a substantial increase in daily passenger numbers following the introduction of the scheme, which allows women to travel free of charge on state-run buses.
The scheme was formally flagged off at the City Centre bus terminal in Durgapur by newly-elected MLAs Jitendra Tewari (Pandaveswar), Lakshman Ghorui (Durgapur West) and Chandrasekhar Banerjee (Durgapur East), said SBSTC Managing Director Pranab Ghosh.
On Tuesday, the terminal witnessed large crowds of women passengers eager to avail themselves of the new facility. Rituparna Ghosh, a schoolteacher from Durgapur who travels daily to Asansol, described the initiative as an unexpected benefit. A domestic worker from the Michipara area, who commutes regularly to City Centre, said the scheme would provide significant financial relief.
Headquartered in Durgapur, SBSTC operates 445 buses from a fleet of 660 vehicles across 191 routes connecting major towns and cities in south Bengal. According to officials, around 34 per cent of its passengers are women, a figure expected to rise under the new scheme.
Senior officials said the monthly reimbursement of Rs 5.5 crore would be necessary to offset revenue losses and additional operational expenses, including fuel, staff salaries and maintenance costs. The state government will need to ensure regular funding to sustain the service, they added.
The SBSTC currently generates average monthly revenue of around Rs 14.5 crore. Of its fleet, 85 buses, including 10 air-conditioned services, operate on the corporation’s most profitable routes linking Durgapur and Asansol with Kolkata.