The various misconceptions surrounding women’s driving are often a cause of gender discrimination. It is not uncommon for women to be subjected to misogynistic comments by some people who opine that “women can’t drive”. However, information from the department concerned and professionals teaching driving contradict such misconceptions.
An experienced driver Savita says, “I am often stared at, especially by men- while I’m driving. At times, I become conscious about my driving even after ten years without a single accident.”
At the regional transport office, the database administrator Ayush Kukreti said that the ratio of men and women who apply for a driving license is 7:3. The women and men are judged equally while testing and a person is passed or disqualified on the basis of the driving skills. Further, the women drivers who appear for the driving test are in general no worse than the males.
An instructor at a local driving school Narendra Singh Negi said that both men and women make mistakes while learning how to drive. It is not as if the women learn slower because there is an equal number of men who are unable to learn driving easily.
Head of a driving school, Neha Bagga said, “I learned driving myself. There are many men too who have a hard time learning, so singling out the women is not fair. There is no role of gender when it comes to driving, only sense.”
She Cab, a taxi service operated by women drivers for women and children was recently introduced in Dehradun. One of the first drivers of this service, Mamta Pujari says that gender doesn’t matter and that females are capable of doing what men can when it comes to driving. She says that she too had to face many odds and misogynistic comments from people, however, she didn’t lose confidence and kept driving to reach the present position wherein she earns from driving.