Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India]: Shimla Mayor Surender Chauhan on Tuesday launched the ‘Pink Taxi Service’ — a women-only taxi initiative aimed at promoting safety and empowerment for women in the city.
The service has been introduced by the social organization Connecting Lives and is operated exclusively by women drivers, catering only to female passengers.
“This is a new initiative. Connecting Lives have worked to connect women living alone. Helping them reach the market and return safely is a major step. I congratulate all members and urge everyone to welcome this initiative so that it benefits all,” Mayor Chauhan told ANI.
In a show of support, Mayor Chauhan announced that he would donate 50 percent of his one-month honorarium to the organization. He also confirmed that “free parking facilities will be made available for these taxis within city limits.”
According to the plan by Connecting Lives, the Pink Taxi service will operate within the boundaries of the Shimla Municipal Corporation. It will be available on call during daytime hours and will also provide emergency services at night. The service is intended to offer a safer and more affordable transport option tailored specifically for women.
Bimla Thakur, President of Connecting Lives, shared insights into the project’s evolution and current status.
“The taxi service we have started will be available on-call within the city and is exclusively for women. We initially launched it as a night service on February 20, but didn’t receive much response, only one or two women reached out. For now, it will operate during the day,” she explained.
Thakur clarified that while routine night operations will be paused due to low demand, the service may still respond to urgent needs at night for registered users.
“If a woman is in distress and needs help at night, we will provide late-night rides — but only to registered women whose contact numbers we have,” she added.
Connecting Lives focuses on empowering women, particularly single mothers, widows, divorcees, and unmarried women.
“We want to empower women. This will be driven by women drivers only. We plan to expand this across Himachal in the future,” Thakur said.
The initiative has already drawn praise from city officials and residents, with many hailing it as a powerful step toward making public mobility safer and more inclusive for women. If successful, the program could serve as a model for other regions in Himachal Pradesh.