Meet Vankadarath Saritha. The 30-year-old former chauffeur made history this week by becoming the first woman recruited to drive a public bus in Delhi.

Starting her job she told the Times of India her priority would be to ensure the safety of female passengers.

“It will be a challenge as the reputation of drivers isn’t so good, but I would follow all the rules and especially keep women safety in mind,” she said.

There has been public anger over the harassment of and violence against women on public transport in India for years, and it came to global attention in 2012 following the fatal gang rape of a 23-year-old student on a bus in Delhi.


RS Minhas of the Delhi Transport Corporation commented: “Having a woman driver will help improve the image of our service. We had received seven to eight applications and we hired Saritha. Now we will advertise again and hire more women drivers.”

The only major problem Saritha encountered on her first day was a set of malfunctioning doors.


independent.co.uk