New Delhi, March 22: Delhi government's free travel facility for women in state-run buses and pilgrimage scheme for senior citizens will continue for the financial year 2023-24, Finance Minister Kailash Gahlot announced on Wednesday.

A total of Rs 4,744 crore has been allocated for the social welfare department this year, out of which Rs 2,962 crores have been proposed for the pension of 8.82 lakh beneficiaries including senior citizens, women, disabled and disadvantaged sections, the minister said. Delhi Budget 2023: State BJP President Virendra Sachdeva Terms AAP Government Budget a Damp ‘Squib’.

The free travel facility for women in DTC and cluster buses started on October 29, 2019. During 2021-22, women passengers availed 13.04 crore free trips in DTC and 12.69 crore in cluster buses. The daily average passenger ridership in DTC was 15.62 lakh and 9.87 lakh in cluster buses during the 2021-22 fiscal. Delhi Budget 2023: Finance Minister Kailash Gahlot Says ‘Would Have Been Happier if Manish Sisodia Had Presented Budget’.

The government also took senior citizens on pilgrimage to 15 places, including Ayodhya, Varanasi, Dwarkadheesh, Puri and Ajmer Sharif, under "Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana", Gahlot said. The Delhi government's budget for various subsidies is pegged at Rs 4,788 crore.

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