Pink Autos Give Bengaluru Women a New Route Into Driving
16 Pink Electric Autos Put Women Drivers in Bengaluru in the Driver’s Seat
Sixteen women auto drivers in Bengaluru have received pink electric autos under a new programme that plans to place 100 such vehicles with women drivers.
TVS Motor Company, She for Society, a women bikers’ NGO and club, and Taliru Foundation launched the programme, called “Building Queens from the Grassroots”, on September 25. The first 16 beneficiaries were identified by Taliru Foundation.
The project is aimed at helping women enter or expand their work in commercial passenger transport. Financial support for the first phase has come from women’s organisations across India.
The launch was attended by Aishwarya Mahadev, Vice Chairman of Karnataka Road Development Ltd, KPCC Social Media President and AICC Spokesperson.
For Bengaluru, where auto-rickshaws form an important part of daily travel, the programme comes as more women are taking up driving as a source of income. Official data cited by The Indian Express in March showed that 2,788 women had registered as auto drivers in the city, with hundreds more undergoing training.
Women drivers have traditionally been a small part of India’s transport workforce. Research by the World Bank has identified access to vehicles, finance, documentation and social attitudes as some of the barriers that can make it harder for women to enter professional driving.
The Bengaluru programme therefore focuses on vehicle ownership as well as driving. For a driver, owning an auto can affect the amount of money left after daily operating costs and can give greater control over working hours. The exact financing terms and income expected for the 16 beneficiaries were not given at the launch.
Harshini of She for Society said the programme was designed to help women become financially independent through driving.
“Queens Drive is our endeavour to build queens from the grassroots by enabling women to become financially independent through mobility. With the support of women’s organisations across India and our collaboration with Taliru Foundation and TVS Motor Company, we aim to create sustainable opportunities for women auto drivers. These 16 pink electric autos mark the beginning of a larger movement that we hope will empower 100 women and inspire communities across the country”
Chitra of Taliru Foundation said the organisation had selected women who wanted to become independent earners.
“Through this initiative, we are working towards creating meaningful livelihood opportunities for women who aspire to become independent earners. The delivery of these 16 pink autos is an important milestone for our beneficiaries, and we are grateful to She for Society, TVS Motor Company, and the supporting women’s organisations for helping turn this vision into reality.”
The move also comes as India’s electric three-wheeler market continues to grow. The International Energy Agency said India remained the world’s largest market for electric three-wheelers, with sales rising 15% in 2025 to almost 800,000 vehicles. More than two-thirds of three-wheelers sold in India that year were electric, according to the IEA’s 2026 Global EV Outlook.
Indian market data points in the same direction. Electric three-wheeler registrations reached 830,819 in financial year 2025-26, up about 19% from 698,914 in the previous financial year, according to Vahan data reported by Autocar Professional.
Government policy has also supported the shift. The PM E-DRIVE scheme, approved in September 2024, included electric three-wheelers among the vehicles eligible for demand incentives. The original scheme had an outlay of ₹10,900 crore and included support for 3.16 lakh electric three-wheelers.
The government later extended the wider PM E-DRIVE scheme to March 2028, although the original terminal date for electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers was retained as March 31, 2026.
TVS Motor has been expanding its own commercial electric vehicle business. Its 2025-26 annual report says the company sold 2.19 lakh three-wheelers during the financial year and crossed an 11% market share in electric three-wheelers. It also launched the TVS King Kargo HD EV for cargo use during the year.
The company entered the electric three-wheeler market with the TVS King EV Max. Its current commercial mobility range includes electric passenger and cargo vehicles. In April 2026, TVS Motor also signed an agreement with Hyundai Motor to jointly develop and commercialise electric three-wheelers for India and other markets.
The choice of electric vehicles also brings a financial question for drivers: whether lower running and maintenance costs can offset the purchase price, financing costs and charging requirements. TVS has said its commercial electric vehicles are being developed around operating costs, charging and day-to-day use by drivers.
For women entering the profession, the vehicle itself is only one part of the equation. Studies on women and transport have found that safety, access to finance, working conditions and social attitudes can affect whether women enter and remain in transport jobs. The World Bank has also noted that women account for only about 12% of the global transport and storage workforce.
Bengaluru has already seen wider policy efforts around women’s mobility. Karnataka’s Shakti scheme, launched in 2023, provides free travel for eligible women on state-run bus services within the state. A government assessment found that the programme had recorded more than 2.89 crore trips during the period studied from January 2023 to March 2025.
The new pink-auto programme addresses a different part of the transport question: women as drivers and vehicle owners rather than passengers.
Rajat Gupta, Business Head, Commercial Mobility, TVS Motor Company, said, “At TVS Motor Company, we believe mobility can play a meaningful role in creating opportunities and strengthening livelihoods. Our collaboration with She for Society and Taliru Foundation reflects our commitment to enabling inclusive and sustainable commercial mobility. The Pink Auto initiative is a significant step towards supporting women entrepreneurs and helping them build greater economic independence. We are proud to contribute to an initiative that brings together mobility, community support, and social impact”
The first 16 vehicles are expected to serve as the opening phase of the planned 100-auto programme. Its longer-term reach will depend on funding, access to vehicles, charging arrangements, driver training and the ability of beneficiaries to earn enough from daily operations to meet their costs.
For Bengaluru’s growing group of women auto drivers, the next test will be what happens after the keys are handed over: how many can stay on the road, build regular earnings and turn vehicle ownership into a lasting livelihood.
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