Under the expanded scheme, women will no longer be restricted to ordinary city services covered by the earlier arrangement, with Express, LSS, Deluxe, mofussil and longer hill-route ordinary buses now included
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay launches the expanded ‘Vetri Payanam’ free bus travel scheme for women in Chennai on Friday, October 2, coinciding with Gandhi Jayanti.
The expansion will allow women to travel free of charge on a wider range of government-run buses across the state. The existing facility, which covers ordinary city and urban buses, will now extend to Express, Limited Stop Service (LSS) and Deluxe buses in metropolitan and urban areas.
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The scheme will also cover ordinary mofussil buses operating between districts and ordinary buses on hill routes extending beyond 40 km.
A total of 12,692 buses operated by seven state transport corporations will come under the expanded scheme. This represents around 69% of the state's scheduled government buses. The government expects approximately 84.32 lakh women to benefit every day.
The scheme is expected to cover around 1.65 lakh scheduled single trips each day. Electronic ticketing machines on the buses included in the programme have also been integrated with the system ahead of the rollout.
The launch events are scheduled to take place in Koyambedu and Ambattur in Chennai.
The expanded programme builds on the existing free travel facility for women in ordinary city buses. The state government announced the expansion in the Assembly in August.
What is Vetri Payanam?
‘Vetri Payanam’, meaning ‘victorious journey’, expands the scope of Tamil Nadu's existing free bus travel programme for women.
Under the expanded scheme, women will no longer be restricted to ordinary city services covered by the earlier arrangement, with Express, LSS, Deluxe, mofussil and longer hill-route ordinary buses now included.
The scheme also provides free travel for transgender persons on the designated services, according to reports on the programme.
Another welfare scheme launched this week
The expansion comes days after Vijay launched the ‘Thai Maman Thanga Mothiram’ scheme at Government Rajaji Hospital in Madurai on September 28.
Under the programme, eligible newborns delivered in government hospitals are to receive a one-gram, 22-carat gold ring. The initiative is being rolled out across Tamil Nadu, with implementation in Maduranthakam and Dharapuram deferred because of by-elections.
Eligibility includes mothers who are permanent residents of Tamil Nadu, have registered under the Pregnancy and Infant Cohort Monitoring and Evaluation system and obtained a Reproductive and Child Health ID.
Published: 02 Oct 2026, 10:08 am IST
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