THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Vijayakumari and Sheela have many things in common. Both are bus drivers, one in state transport corporation and the other in private sector. Interestingly the duo has been driving buses for the past six years.
Vijayakumari, 48, who lives in Pulayarakonam, drives three private buses by turn in city. Her day start at 5 am and ends at 8.30 in the night. She had been dreaming of being a drive from childhood.
She realised her dream in 2002 when one of the family members in a house she was working as maidenrolled her into driving classes. She ended up becoming a trainer there.
Subsequently she had a short stint as taxi driver. “I got upset as they allowed me to drive only small vehicles. This increased my resovle to obtain license for heavy vehicles.”
Vijayakumari now dreams of building a house in the five cents of land she own in Pularayakonam.
Like Vijayakumari Sheela , 46, has been driving KSRTC buses since 2013.
Unlike Vijayakumari, she was lucky to have brothers who were drivers by profession. It was under their tutelage that she learnt driving auto-rickshaw and four wheeler. From 2002 to 2013 she worked as a trainer with a local driving school and later qualified the PSC exams to become driver. For the past six years she has been driving KSRTC buses.
“My colleagues in KSRTC were a great help. I owe them lot for what I am today,” says Sheela as she drives out of the KSRTC Vikas Bhavan depot to her next destination.
