Hyderabad, March 18 -- Telangana Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Wednesday, March 18, said that the Mahalakshmi free bus scheme has increased occupancy in RTC buses up to 98 per cent from the earlier 69 per cent.

He said that the initiative has helped women secure employment opportunities by travelling longer distances and that it was unfortunate that people were spreading misinformation about the scheme on social media.

Replying to a question in the Legislative Council, the minister said that the free bus scheme, which was launched within 48 hours of the Congress government coming to power, has helped 279.97 crore women avail free trips between December 9, 2023, and February 28, 2026.

He said that the daily ridership of women i...