The Sindh government has distributed free electric scooters to women in Sukkur under its Pink Electric Vehicle Scooty Scheme, continuing the provincial rollout of an initiative designed to improve women’s mobility and independence across the province. A distribution ceremony was held by the Transport and Mass Transit Department of the Government of Sindh, at which Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon addressed participants and outlined the scope and intent of the programme.
Speaking at the ceremony, Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon said the scheme aims to improve mobility and independence for women, noting that around 150 women in Sindh previously held motorbike licenses, but now approximately 20,000 women have applied for driving licenses following the launch of the initiative. He said the government is providing scooters, helmets, licenses, and training free of cost, adding that the scheme does not involve any donor agency or require recommendations for eligibility. Registration for the scooters has also been made free. Memon urged women to actively use the scooters and follow road safety measures.
The jump from 150 licensed female motorcyclists to 20,000 applicants for driving licenses is a striking indicator of the demand that this type of initiative can unlock when barriers such as cost and access to training are removed. The scooties are being distributed through a transparent balloting process held in the presence of print and electronic media, with a selection committee comprising officials from the Excise, Transport, and Finance departments as well as media representatives overseeing the process to ensure full transparency and fairness. Eligibility conditions require applicants to be permanent residents of Sindh, either students or working women, and to hold a valid motorbike driving license, with recipients also required to commit not to sell or sublet the scooter for a minimum of seven years.
At the ceremony, the minister also highlighted the Sindh government’s broader transport record, noting that Pakistan’s first electric bus was introduced in Sindh by the Pakistan Peoples Party, and also referred to the Pink Bus service which employs women as both drivers and conductors. He further stated that the Sindh government is building houses for 2.1 million families free of cost under a housing initiative spearheaded by Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. The Pink Electric Vehicle Scooty Scheme, implemented through the Sindh Mass Transit Authority, is positioned as part of a wider package of women-focused welfare programmes that the provincial government has framed as a continuation of a long-standing policy tradition of expanding access and opportunity for women across Sindh.
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