Lined along the busy street of Paul Wells Road (St Thomas Mount), are a number of autorickshaws, bearing the Makkal Auto (MAuto) symbol. Inside the MAuto premises, a flurry of sari-clad women wearing khaki-coloured waistcoats, sit proudly. In fact, they constitute almost half of the audience. A few rows behind, are women in hijab. Minutes later, two transgender women make their entrance: all beaming with pride. MAuto, already with 330 female drivers, has now employed six transgenders, 10 hijab-clad women and 30 other women, as auto pilots who will also undergo training to improve their skills.
Among these women, is 37-year-old Daulath Begum, who sells dosa/idli batter for a living. Standing guard, are her family members: her mother, husband, niece and son. Her husband, who has been driving autos for the past 20 years, is the reason why Daulath wants to try her hand at driving autos. She says with determination, “If my children see that even their mother can do something as empowering as this, they will not shy away from any challenges in life. I want to be a role model to them.” Her 19-year-old niece too, has accompanied her in search of employment opportunities. Did Daulath face any challenges or opposition at home, when she decided to venture into this profession?
An immediate response follows, “Not at all! Look at this, my mother is here to support me. What else does one need? And, my husband is the reason I am here.” Now, Daulath is waiting for the training schedule to be announced to start a new lease of life.
Tansgender women are also being trained to develop their skills, and five trainees have already been given jobs in the MAuto call centre. It is through Sweta Sudhakar, founder-director of Born to Win, a city-based organisation aimed at providing education and employment to the transgender community, that MAuto approached the transgender pilots. “Those who are interested are always our priority. Sarala, for instance, had approached me saying that she was interested. So, in the coming week, you will see her driving in the streets,” she says. Sarala was working as a housemaid earlier. “Like how everyone in society — male or female — earns their own bread, we should also have access to jobs that give a steady income,” she continues.
Empowerment comes through even the simplest of decisions. For instance, these women are called ‘pilots’ instead of drivers, giving a sense of importance to their choice of livelihood. And, in an effort to introduce safer travel options for women, and employment opportunities for women from less-privileged sections of society, MAuto’s initiative is a win-win for all, believes Mansoor Ali Khan, founder. The company, which is currently operating in Chennai, Madurai and Trichy, has also introduced a Women’s Pride icon on their mobile app which gives the users an option to choose whether to ride with a male, female or transgender pilot. In addition to that, MAuto assures that if a female pilot is not available at the time of request, the company would make sure they are available within five to 10 minutes. Apart from this feature, MAuto’s app also comes with a panic button and tracking system. “And for the first few days, female riders will be given exciting offers. We are also planning to extend our services to Coimbatore, Salem, Erode, Tirupur by end of this month,” says Mansoor.
MAuto Pride, the app, can be downloaded from Google Playstore. Apart from the mobile application, a helpline — 43214321 is also available for customers to book their rides.
