A Kalyan rickshaw drivers scheme will provide a ₹10,000 honorarium to 251 autorickshaw drivers aged 65 and above who are registered members of the Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Maharashtra Passenger Transport Drivers Welfare Board, officials said.
The beneficiaries belong to the Kalyan Regional Transport Office area, which covers Kalyan, Dombivli, Ulhasnagar, Ambernath and Shahapur. The amount will be deposited directly into the drivers’ bank accounts, according to Kalyan Deputy Regional Transport Officer Ashutosh Barkul.
A cheque for the honorarium was handed over to Barkul by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik at a programme held at Gadkari Rangayatan theatre in Thane. The payment is being issued under the welfare board’s senior-driver support programme.
The Kalyan regional transport area has about 5,800 registered members of the welfare board, the report said. It has recorded the highest membership enrolment in the state and ranks second in Maharashtra for the number of members enrolled. Barkul was also felicitated during the programme for the department’s membership performance.
The welfare initiative was established following demands from rickshaw and taxi unions for financial support for drivers in old age. Representatives of several organisations had sought a dedicated welfare mechanism, arguing that autorickshaw drivers generally do not receive a retirement-like government safety net after years of passenger service.
The government’s support is intended to provide financial assistance to eligible drivers who may no longer be able to continue passenger transport work because of age. The Kalyan area has previously seen other autorickshaw drivers receive benefits under the same honorarium programme.
The welfare board was established through an initiative associated with Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik is now overseeing the programme’s implementation, according to the report. The next step for the 251 beneficiaries is the direct transfer of the sanctioned amount into their bank accounts.
