For women in Indian cities, getting from home to work and back isn’t just a commute — it’s a battle. Each journey is marked by fear of harassment, lack of clean public toilets, unsafe last-mile connectivity, poorly lit streets, overcrowded buses, and infrastructure that simply doesn’t account for their mobility needs. These challenges were among the many issues discussed on Wednesday at Urban Adda 2025, a three-day national dialogue aimed at making Indian cities more inclusive, resilient, and equitable.
Policymakers, artists, ministers and experts came under one roof on Wednesday, the second day of Urban Adda 2025. Hosted by the Raahgiri Foundation in partnership with the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) and GuruJal at the India Habitat Centre, the conference brought together policymakers, artists, urban mobility experts, and ministers. Hindustan Times is the media partner for the event.
Actor and wellness entrepreneur Pooja Bedi, delivering a plenary address, framed the issue in stark terms: “Our commute is not just travel. It’s like survival Olympics, and the medal is just reaching home without trauma.”
Bedi pointed out that cities and transit systems are designed around male travel patterns, ignoring the fact that women often travel with dependents, make multiple stops, or move during off-peak hours. “Our cities aren’t built for us. The way women move through urban spaces — it’s not linear, it’s cyclical. We aren’t just tired, we’re burnt out before we even clock in,” she said. “It’s not just about a seat in the bus. Women have to be given a seat at the table.”
But in transport systems across India, that table remains largely out of reach. Women remain underrepresented behind the wheel — whether it’s buses, autos, or ferries.
Rajeshwari Balasubramanian from the Azad Foundation traced the decade-long battle to train and hire women as heavy vehicle drivers in Delhi. “When we began speaking with the government in 2015, the eligibility criteria itself was discriminatory,” she said. “A height requirement of 167 cm and a minimum of three years’ experience meant most women didn’t even stand a chance.”
Thanks to sustained advocacy and structured training, the foundation helped over 100 women break into the transport sector and get hired by agencies like the Delhi Transport Corporation. But even then, Balasubramanian said, the road wasn’t smooth. “Hiring was just the beginning. Depots lacked hygienic toilets. There were no rest areas. Infrastructure was still unequal. We had to train women not just in driving but also in communication, self-defence, and resilience.”
Swati Khanna, Senior Sector Specialist for Urban Mobility at KfW Development Bank, underscored the systemic nature of the problem. “Our systems need to be gender-agnostic, but in reality, they exclude women. Inclusion has to be intentional,” she said. Khanna shared a telling example from Kochi, where GIZ supported the launch of an all-electric water metro. “Initially, only one woman applied to be a ferry pilot — and she dropped out. But when the Metro reached out to the Naval Training Academy, five women signed up for a rigorous three-year training programme,” she said.
If successful, they could be among the first female electric ferry operators in the world — joining the ranks of a single known pilot in Venice. “It just shows how deep the barriers are, and how long the pipeline has to be,” said Khanna.
Mukta Naik, fellow at the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA), echoed these concerns and highlighted efforts to correct course. “Government initiatives are starting to look at gender equity in transport systems — from safe streets to inclusive infrastructure design,” she said. “But we need to shift from intent to action, and from isolated efforts to systemic transformation.”