Rotary autos make women self-reliant

Twenty women in Mumbai will soon be sitting on the driver’s seat of their own auto rickshaws, thanks to the Pink Angels initiative of RC Deonar, RID 3141, which was rolled out last year following a proposal from its vocational director Alka Murli.

“Back then getting even one woman to become an auto driver was an uphill task,” says Alka. The steely resolve of the members and support from the community not only got women participants and their family’s support, but also instilled ­courage among homemakers who had a will to do something for themselves and their families. In addition to training women to drive the three-wheelers, the club is assisting them in buying their vehicles and getting the licence and loans. The 20 women are in various stages of training, and getting their licences and loans processed.

IPDG Rajendra Agarwal flagged off four pink auto rickshaws in August at Chembur in the presence of club president Vidhya Subramanian, past president Sudhir Mehta and district avenue director Indumathi ­Gopinathan. The women got their auto rickshaws through the GoI’s finance scheme, Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana.