For First Time, RTC Opens Bus Driver Positions for Women
1,000 driver and 743 shramik posts open; online applications from Oct 8
Nizamabad, Medak: The Telangana Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) is preparing to appoint women as bus drivers in regular service. After a long gap, the RTC has announced its plans to recruit 1,000 drivers and 743 shramiks, including mechanics, fitters, electricians, painters, welders and others, across all regional offices.
In June this year, Deccan Chronicle had reported that the RTC had recruited V. Saritha as its first woman driver on an outsourcing bassis. She was to drive an electric super luxury bus between Miryalaguda and Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station in Hyderabad. She secured her licence from the city and operated buses in Delhi for a decade before returning to Telangana.
The RTC first appointed women conductors in 1995, when the then Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu introduced 33 per cent reservation for women in RTC jobs. Since then, hundreds of women have worked as conductors. After the formation of Telangana, large-scale recruitments in RTC came to a halt, leaving unemployed youth without opportunities.
Unlike in the past, when RTC itself handled recruitments, the Telangana State Level Police Recruitment Board (TSLPRB) has been entrusted with the process. Officials said the recruitment will pave the way for not only women passengers but also women drivers to play an active role in the corporation.
A senior transport department official explained that earlier separate driving licences were issued for passenger and goods vehicles. Now, a single licence covers both heavy goods motor vehicles and heavy passenger motor vehicles. Many women in the state have already obtained such licences, making them eligible to apply for driver posts. Appointments will be based on the interest and eligibility of women candidates, the official added.
Recruitment for drivers under the women’s quota had been implemented earlier in a few regional offices. However, major recruitments came to a standstill after 2013, and backlog posts were kept aside. Following legal directives, both direct recruitment and limited (backlog) recruitment are now being taken up.
The TSLPRB has released the notification for TSRTC Recruitment–2025 on its website www.tgprb.gov.in. Online applications will open on October 8 and close on October 28.
A senior TSRTC official said that the corporation is ready to employ both men and women as drivers. “Equal opportunities will be provided under horizontal reservation. Backlog posts will also be cleared in line with court directives. Women will be appointed as drivers, while backlog vacancies will be filled with men immediately,” the official said.
