Kadamba Transport Corporation has appointed Pooja Vaigankar as its first woman bus driver, marking a new milestone for gender diversity in Goa’s public transport system. Vaigankar, who previously worked as a truck driver in Bicholim, has been deployed on the Panaji–Valpoi route.
Her appointment was made on Dussehra and she was formally welcomed to the KTC fleet by Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant on Tuesday. It is the first time since the corporation was established in 1980 that a woman has joined its bus-driving workforce.
Sawant said the appointment showed that women were taking up roles traditionally dominated by men in the state’s transport sector. “We have already seen with the pink force how women can ride cars and rickshaws, however, Pooja has proved that even a mighty bus can be driven,” he said.
The chief minister added that the appointment reflected the growing participation of women in transport-related roles. “I am very happy to see that our women are so strong that we are slowly building a community of women who can take up such roles,” he said.
Vaigankar told the Times of India that she had applied specifically for the driver’s post when vacancies opened at KTC. During the recruitment process, officials were surprised that she wanted to become a bus driver and asked whether she had applied for a conductor’s position instead. She said she remained firm about wanting to drive buses.
“Prior to this, I worked as a truck driver in Bicholim. When vacancies opened at KTC and I appeared for the exam, the management was surprised that I wanted to take up the position of a driver. They asked me if I had come there to apply for the post of a bus conductor but I was firm that I wanted to drive their buses,” Vaigankar said.
After completing the recruitment process, Vaigankar was absorbed into the corporation and assigned her duties on the Panaji–Valpoi route. The route links the state capital with Valpoi and places her appointment directly within KTC’s regular passenger bus operations.
Her entry comes as KTC’s workforce becomes more gender-diverse. The corporation currently has nearly 40 women conductors and four women traffic controllers, according to the report. The appointment therefore expands women’s presence from passenger-facing and operational coordination roles to the direct operation of buses.
The development also highlights the role of recruitment processes in opening public-sector transport jobs to applicants who have already gained experience in commercial driving. Vaigankar’s earlier work as a truck driver gave her experience in handling heavy vehicles before she joined KTC.
Vaigankar has now begun her duties on the Panaji–Valpoi service after completing the corporation’s recruitment process. KTC’s next operational step is to continue her deployment on the assigned route.
