ISLAMABAD: Private transport companies operating in Rawalpindi have started hiring women as rickshaw drivers, thus attracting a number of unemployed women.
A company representative told APP that the project was launched with the aim of creating job opportunities for unemployed women in the city.
He said that the trend of women as rickshaw drivers is yet not very attractive but in the future, this profession can gain popularity among women as it will help women economically.
The company official said that initially very few women applied for the job but now a dozen have already joined the profession.
A number of cab companies have started hiring women as rickshaw drivers in a male-dominated profession to earn independently to support their families.
Noreen Bano, a rickshaw driver said that as a sole breadwinner for her family, she decided to get a rickshaw through help from her relatives. Initially, it was really strange but afterward people start encouraging her, she added.
In the start, she used to pick and drop to school children but then she became associated with a private cab service and started earning enough money to feed her children.
She said that even if one is not educated enough, one just needs passion and confidence to get into this profession. She said that it is better than begging on streets to earn money.
“A lot of women asked me to teach them how to drive a rickshaw but I said I will only do so if they take it seriously and not give it up because this profession needs courage and confidence”, she said.
“Everyone respects me,” she said, adding that neither male nor female passengers caused her any hassle.
“Fear will lead you nowhere. Today, if you are going to be scared, then tomorrow you will not be able to do anything,” she said, adding that women are capable of doing everything.