Thiruvananthapuram, 14 June (H.S.):

The CPI(M) has decided to boycott the launch of the Kerala government’s free bus travel scheme for women, alleging that the ruling UDF has misled the public about the scope of the initiative.

Addressing reporters on Saturday, CPI(M) state secretary M.V. Govindan said party MLAs have been instructed not to participate in programmes associated with the launch of the ‘Priyadarshini’ scheme, which will provide free travel for women on KSRTC ordinary services from June 15.

Govindan said the party was not opposed to extending free travel benefits to women, but criticised the government for what he described as a significant dilution of its original promise. According to him, the UDF had projected the scheme as one that would enable women to travel free of cost anywhere in the state. However, he claimed that the benefit has now been restricted to only around 1,000 ordinary KSRTC buses.

He also pointed out regional disparities in the availability of ordinary services, noting that Malabar has relatively few ordinary KSRTC buses compared to districts such as Thiruvananthapuram, where such services are more common. As a result, he argued, the scheme would not benefit women equally across the state.

The CPI(M) leader said the party’s criticism stemmed from what it viewed as a mismatch between the government’s promises and its implementation. Drawing a parallel with the UDF’s pledge to raise the honorarium of ASHA workers to Rs 21,000, Govindan alleged that the government had failed to fully deliver on that commitment as well.

“The issue is not with providing welfare benefits or free travel. Our criticism is that the UDF says one thing and does another,” he said.

Describing the scheme as part of what he termed a “deceptive approach” by the government, Govindan said the CPI(M) would stay away from all events connected with its launch.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman