The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation has signed a memorandum of understanding with Toyota Kirloskar Motor Private Limited to build 125 Hirkani rooms at ST bus stands across Maharashtra over three financial years, creating private and secure spaces for breastfeeding mothers and women travelling with infants.
The agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, along with Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik, were also present, according to a report by Loksatta – Mumbai.
The proposed Hirkani rooms are intended to provide nursing mothers with a clean, safe and private place to care for their babies during journeys. The initiative is being positioned as a facility for women passengers who may otherwise lack an appropriate space while using ST bus stations.
Under the agreement, Toyota Kirloskar Motor will support the project through its corporate social responsibility programme. The rooms will be prefabricated units measuring approximately 3 metres by 3 metres and will be installed at bus stands across the state.
The planned units will include space required for infant care, along with furniture, electrical fittings and electronic equipment. The agreement does not specify in the supplied report which bus stands will receive the rooms first or the schedule for completing the installations within the three-year period.
MSRTC operates a wide network of bus services across Maharashtra, connecting cities, towns and rural areas. Bus stations are therefore important points of access for passengers who may spend extended periods waiting between services or travelling over long distances. The proposed facilities address a specific gap in the design and usability of these public transport spaces for mothers with infants.
The project also places a passenger facility within a CSR-supported infrastructure framework. While Toyota Kirloskar will provide assistance under its CSR initiative, the supplied report does not detail the total project cost, the responsibilities of individual bus-stand authorities, or the system that will be used to maintain the rooms after installation.
The next implementation steps, including the selection of locations and the rollout schedule for the 125 units, are expected to determine how quickly the proposed facility becomes available to passengers across Maharashtra.
