Tourists visiting Puducherry can soon hop on to an environment friendly e-rickshaw, driven by women.
With the Puducherry government giving the nod for introduction of e-rickshaws, the Transport Department has placed orders for procurement of 38 e-rickshaws. The vehicles will be handed over to Puducherry Municipality and they will be operated by women self-help group members.
The e-rickshaws will hit the roads in September. E-rickshaws, which are popular in Delhi, Jaipur and Udaipur, are not only efficient and environment-friendly, but also a cheap mode of transport, officials said.
According to a senior Transport Department official, “The penetration of intermediary public transport is very low, especially in the Boulevard area. With limited options for mobility, the government planned to bring in e-rickshaws. These battery-operated vehicles have multiple benefits and can easily navigate the narrow roads in the French and Tamil quarters in the Boulevard area. The vehicle can carry four passengers and can run 85 km on full charge.”
The official further said: “We have framed procedural guidelines for licensing / registration and grant of permit for the e-rickshaws to provide affordable transport to senior citizens, women, and children for last mile connectivity. The Transport Department will procure the rickshaws and outsource them to the municipality who will select the women SHGs for operation. The introduction of e-rickshaws is aimed at empowering women and providing them with a secure means of livelihood.”
Sources said the selected women SHG members will be given training to drive e-rickshaws and the Transport Department will also help them in getting driving licenses. While the department will be responsible for the fare notification, the operation and maintenance of the vehicles will be borne by the municipality.
The fleet of rickshaws will have a uniform colour code. They will have GPS facility and be connected to the Centralised Control and Command Centre, established by the Transport Department. The vehicles will be under the control of the municipality and the local body will work out the revenue sharing formula.
