New Delhi: Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Tuesday rejected claims that the ‘Saheli Pink Card’ for free bus travel to women residents can be used again only one hour after it has been tapped as “lies” and “propaganda”.
She stressed that the new mobility cards are working with full efficiency, providing free travel to women and transgender residents of Delhi on buses.
“A rumour is being spread that if you tap your pink card once in a bus and then you get off and board another bus, then the card does not work. These are complete lies and political propaganda,” she said in a
video message in a post on X.
Earlier this month, the Pink National Common Mobility (PNCM) card was launched by President Droupadi Murmu. More than 1 lakh cards have been distributed till now, officials said.
Gupta also said that travellers can use the Pink Card in “gaps of 5, 10 and 15 minutes” and that women can travel as many times as they want for free.
Under the scheme, the BJP government has replaced the pink paper ticketing system launched by the previous AAP government in 2019 by the Centre’s ‘One Nation, One Card’ initiative through the Pink NCMC card, allowing free travel only for Delhi residents.
Chief Minister Gupta had said that the card will also enable seamless paid access to the Metro, Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) and other public transport services through a single smart card.
According to officials, the facility will be implemented on the same pattern and mechanism as the free travel scheme currently available for women passengers in Delhi buses.
The Delhi government has set up 50 authorised centres across the city to facilitate
the issuance of the Saheli Pink smart cards.