The strike by contractual drivers of the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) has created significant transport challenges for outstation patients. Many visitors from Rajasthan, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh are finding it difficult to navigate the city’s metro system due to their unfamiliarity with the routes. While the metro is usually a cost-effective option, high auto-rickshaw and cab fares are leaving these commuters stranded, caught between limited public transport and expensive alternatives.
“I had my right eye operated on, but I gradually lost vision in the other eye. “Till Rewari we get the DTC bus, and from there we take another state bus to reach home. We have been coming to AIIMS Delhi where my husband is undergoing treatment for throat cancer for the past two months. Devi, who hails from Bihar’s Mujjafarnagar, came straight to the hospital with all her luggage. For the past few months, I have been regularly coming to the hospital for treatment.
We have spent the past three hours waiting; not a single bus has arrived,” said Ghanshyam, whose 20-year-old son requires treatment. At another bus stop near the hospital, Sheila Devi (72) sat on the bench with a phone in one hand and a small purse in the other. We stay at a resthouse in RK Puram at ₹ 600 per day as we don’t have any home here or any close relative or friends,” said Devi.
This is the first time we have struggled to get a bus back home,” said Devi. “Some people told us that buses are delayed but will come.
