DTC Pink Tickets To End From August 1: Women Must Use Pink Saheli Smart Card

The Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) has announced a significant transition in its ticketing system for female passengers, while starting from August 1, the existing paper-based pink tickets will be discontinued across all DTC buses. In their place, women will be required to use the Pink Saheli NCMC (National Common Mobility Card) to avail of the free travel facility. This move marks a shift towards a more digital and transparent public transport system in the national capital, ensuring that the benefits of the scheme reach the intended beneficiaries effectively.

Mandatory Tapping and Regular Fares

According to the official statement from the government, it will be mandatory for women to carry and tap the Pink Saheli Smart Card on the Electronic Ticketing Machines (ETM) held by conductors to benefit from the free bus travel scheme. Passengers who don't possess this card after the August 1 deadline won't be eligible for free travel. Instead, they will have to purchase regular tickets and pay the applicable fare for their journey. This rule applies to both DTC buses and the cluster buses operated by the Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS). The DTC circular clarifies that eligible female passengers will continue to receive paper pink tickets only until July 31.

Current Status and Application Process

The government has revealed that 15 lakh Pink Saheli Smart Cards have already been issued in Delhi. The process of creating these cards will continue at various authorized centers even after the August 1 deadline. The Pink Saheli Smart Card was officially launched in March during a state government program by President Droupadi Murmu to facilitate free travel for women residing in Delhi. To apply for the card, beneficiaries must link it with their Aadhaar card and mobile number, while this linkage is crucial to verify the applicant's age, gender, and residential status in Delhi. Currently, there is no online application option; women must visit DC offices, SDM offices, or authorized DTC centers across Delhi to get their cards made. The application process at these offline centers reportedly commenced on March 3, 2026.

NCMC Features and Interoperability

The Pink Saheli card is designed under the One Nation, One Card initiative. While it provides free travel exclusively in DTC and DIMTS buses, it can also be used as a regular mobility card for other public transport modes like the Delhi Metro and the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS). For these other modes, passengers will need to pay the regular fare using the card. This interoperability makes it a versatile tool for commuters in the National Capital Region.

Comparison with the Previous Pink Ticket Scheme

The decision by the Rekha Gupta government comes at a time when it has decided to phase out the existing paper-based system. The previous scheme, initiated under the Arvind Kejriwal government, relied on physical paper tickets issued by conductors for every journey, while the new Pink Saheli Smart Card differs from the old system in several ways. Firstly, the ticketing format has changed from manual paper to a digital smart card that requires tapping on ETMs. Secondly, the new system mandates residency verification, requiring applicants to provide a Delhi-specific Aadhaar card. The old system allowed any woman to travel for free by simply taking a pink ticket, which the current administration criticized for lacking strict checks to ensure benefits were limited to genuine Delhi residents. Plus, by digitizing travel through the smart card, the government aims to accurately track the number of free passenger rides and reduce ticketing fraud, addressing previous allegations of discrepancies in ticket distribution.