Idukki: While the Priyadarshini scheme, which offers free travel for women on KSRTC ordinary services, has come as a major relief for women across Kerala, its benefits remain largely out of reach for many in the remote villages of Idukki, where public transport is virtually non-existent.

In several parts of the district, women continue to rely heavily on taxis to commute to work due to the acute shortage of bus services. The challenge is particularly stark in the cardamom-growing belt, the economic mainstay of Idukki. .

In areas such as Kallupalam and Adukidanthan under the Nedumkandam KSRTC depot, even basic connectivity remains elusive, with barely any services operated by either KSRTC or private operators. A similar situation exists in plantation regions such as Udumbanchola and Chemmannar, where residents have to make do with a handful of private buses and a lone KSRTC service.

At Anakkallu, a community-run bus is the only public transport option available to residents. Likewise, people in Mavady depend on a single service `Ashraya', their sole public link to nearby towns and essential services.

For the women employed in cardamom estates, the lack of connectivity means that the promise of free travel remains largely theoretical. Vallimani, a plantation worker from Kukkalayar near Udumbanchola, says the scheme is a welcome initiative but falls short of addressing the challenges faced by women labourers in the high ranges.

"We rely on taxis twice a day to travel to the estates. In many cases, the farmers bear the transportation cost, which offers some relief. But if workers like us are to benefit from the Priyadarshini scheme in any meaningful way, new bus services must be introduced. As things stand, women plantation workers are being left out," she says.