Sarita received immense support from the Azad Foundation in her driving journey. Despite facing gender discrimination from male drivers who found it offending to accept a woman in the role, Sarita received immense from many people. In 2015, she secured as job on contract basis with DTC.
Delhi: Sarita, hailing from Telangana, is the first female DTC bus driver. She was only 18 years old, when she embarked on her journey when her father fell ill. Despite all the challenges in her life, she learned how to drive and acquired a license after three years. She began driving an auto rickshaw in her village, and today, she has accomplished an impressive feat.
Who is Sarita?
Sarita was born and raised in a village of Telangana. She is the youngest among five sisters. Her father earns a living as a farmer, and her mother is a homemaker. The parents worked hard to educate their daughters to make them self-reliant. Unfortunately, when Sarita’s father fell ill, the family faced financial difficulties. The situation became worse when the crops were destroyed during a flood. Sarita decided to leave her studies to seek employment.
Sarita’s dreams
Growing up, Sarita dreamed of becoming a police officer like Kiran Bedi. However, she had to discontinue her studies due to financial constraints. Her employment ambitions were encouraged by her brother-in-law. He urged her to learn how to drive. Being a young girl, Sarita faced numerous challenges while driving in the village, but she did not give up on the dream of providing a comfortable life to her family.
Challenges as a woman driver
Society turns cruel when giving a woman the position she deserves. A woman goes through tremendous difficulties just because of her gender. Sarita had to endure through same challenges. She had to alter her appearance. Recounting her past experiences, Sarita mentioned that people would often inappropriately touch her when they saw a girl driving an auto. To counter this, she cut her hair short and began wearing pants and shirts. She shared distressing instances where men auto-drivers would puncture her auto rickshaw to stop her from working. However, she remained resolute in her commitment to her work.
Support from Azad Foundation
During her driving journey, Sarita learned about Azad Foundation, which provided driving training to women. She looked at it as a good opportunity and visited Delhi for an interview. She successfully secured a spot for herself. Being from Telangana, Sarita found it difficult to establish a grasp on Hindi language. Azad Foundation played a crucial role in supporting her during this period.
Getting a job
When DTC released a notice of vacancy for women drivers, Sarita along with 15 other women appeared for the test. Despite facing gender discrimination from male drivers who found it offending to accept a woman in the role, Sarita received immense from many people. In 2015, she secured a job on contract basis with DTC.
During the inauguration of Delhi Secretariat, Sarita had the responsibility of driving the DTC bus with her entire staff. She confidently drove the bus, making headlines in the media. Through her exceptional driving skills, she proved herself to be a great driver.
Being honoured
Sarita, being the first female DTC bus driver in Delhi, has received numerous awards. She even received appreciation from her role model Kiran Bedi. Two years later, she was also awarded with an honour from the President of India. The Telangana Government honoured her with a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh.
She was also acknowledged for her accomplishments during Akhilesh Yadav’s government in UP. However, the disappointing thing is that despite all the accolades and respect, Sarita continues working on a contract and has not been offered a permanent position.
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