One year after its launch, a free-bus scheme for women in Andhra Pradesh has crossed a milestone that few welfare programmes in India achieve this fast — 100 crore free trips, completed in just over a year. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu announced on Tuesday, 6 October 2026 that the 'Stree Shakti' scheme has crossed this historic mark, crediting the women of the state for making it a living part of their daily lives.

From Independence Day promise to 100-crore journeys

Launched on 15 August 2025 — Independence Day — the Stree Shakti scheme offered women in Andhra Pradesh free travel on state-run buses. CM Naidu's post in Telugu described the scheme as having earned the 'affection of the state's daughters and the approval of its mothers' — mana aadabiddala aadaranatho, maatrumoortula aamodanatho. In just over 14 months, the numbers tell the story: an average of 24 lakh women boarding state buses for free every single day.

That is not a statistic — that is a city the size of a mid-sized Indian metropolis on the move, every morning, without paying a rupee.

Rs 3,550 crore saved — and where Naidu wants it to go

Chief Minister Naidu put a precise rupee figure on the scheme's cumulative benefit: women across Andhra Pradesh have collectively saved Rs 3,550 crore in travel expenses since the scheme began. He was deliberate about where he hopes those savings flow — 'every rupee saved should go towards their children's education, family needs, and the future,' he wrote.

The beneficiaries the CM named are specific: the schoolgirl commuting to class, the woman heading to her workplace, the daily-wage earner travelling for her livelihood. For each of them, the bus fare was not a small cost — it was a recurring cut on a tight household budget. Eliminating it, the scheme's architects argue, is economic relief by another name.

APSRTC's role in delivering the scale

Hitting 100 crore trips is also an operational achievement. CM Naidu offered 'heartfelt congratulations' to the management and staff of the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC), who have had to absorb the surge in ridership and ensure service quality across the state's vast road network. The scheme's success depends as much on buses running on time as on the political will behind it.

Free-travel schemes for women are not unique to Andhra Pradesh — similar programmes exist in Tamil Nadu, Delhi, and other states — but the sheer velocity at which Stree Shakti has scaled, crossing 100 crore rides inside 14 months with a daily average of 24 lakh users, gives it a claim to being among the most rapidly adopted of its kind in the country.

The question the milestone raises is one of sustainability: as ridership grows, so does the fiscal burden on APSRTC. How the state manages that equation will determine whether Stree Shakti becomes a permanent fixture or a celebrated but time-limited promise.