The lives of 120,000 people have already started to change while 150,000 will soon see a difference. The prime minister, Navin Ramgoolam, has announced the implementation of one of his biggest promises during the electoral campaign: free bus transport for elderly and handicapped people as well as for students. For the first two categories, free transport became effective yesterday while students will have to wait two more weeks to have free transport on school days.

The rapidity with which the government has chosen to implement this popular measure may be a way of showing how reliable they are. The PM may want to convince people that the government will honour its commitments. ?The social alliance promised that it would bring about changes in the life of the population. We are demonstrating today that we keep our promises,? declared Navin Ramgoolam proudly .

The Labour Party evidently wants to perpetuate its ?social? tradition. The PM made it clear that they were the ones that introduced universal pensions and free education. Free transport thus follows the same tradition. However, he didn?t explain clearly how the government intends to finance the Rs 600 million this measure will cost the State each year. He just stressed that the government will boost the country?s economy even though it is now facing tough times.

Restrictions on days and times

Unrestricted transport will be given for free to all pensioners and handicapped people. ?Old and handicapped people will be able to go round the island whenever they want.? But this won?t be the case for students.

The measure for students of primary, secondary and tertiary (full-time only) students includes some restrictions. They will be granted free transport on school days only, twice a day ? from home to school and back again. Students will not get free transport on a day they don?t go to school. This measure will come into force as from 1st September, the PM confirmed.

But the government wants to go further by modernising the system. Even if he hasn?t fixed the date, the PM gave the assurance that electronic cards would be given to all students ?in the medium term? to facilitate the computation of the number of trips they do every day.

The deputy prime minister and minister of Public infrastructure, Rashid Beebeejaun, announced that an agreement has been signed between the government and the bus operators to make sure there will be no problem in implementing the new measures.