Amaravati: The Andhra Pradesh government has signed an agreement with Rapido, India's leading ride-hailing service, to boost women’s employment and attract more females to use e-powered public transportation.
At least 1,000 women riders and e-rickshaw drivers will be deployed across the state under this project within a few months.
Women are usually hesitant to use ride-hailing services run by Rapido, Ola, and Uber for being predominantly male-driven across the country and in the state. To address this issue, the government has decided to engage women from self-help groups (SHGs) by giving them e-bikes and e-autos so they may work as professional riders.
“At least one thousand e-bikes and e-autos will be distributed to women from various self-help groups and having valid driving licenses to run the services and earn a livelihood,” officials said.
City-Wise Allocation
Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada will get 400 e-bikes and e-autos each while Rajahmundry, Kakinada, Guntur, Nellore, Tirupati & Kurnool will get 200 vehicles jointly.
"The women will receive loans under the Mudra and self-employment schemes to purchase the vehicles," said officials.
Rapido Agreement
There would be no platform charges for the first three months. Post that, a Rs 1,000 monthly charge will apply.
Rapido will guarantee at least 300 bookings per month for each driver.
Officials believe this initiative will improve employment opportunities for women and enhance safety and accessibility for female passengers across major cities.
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