New Delhi, March 11, 2024: Hyundai Motor India Foundation (HMIF), the philanthropic arm of Hyundai Motor India Ltd. (HMIL), has partnered with ‘Navjyoti Transforming Lives & Careers Society’ NGO and BluSmart, EV ride-hailing service and charging infrastructure network, to employ 250 trained women drivers who are the beneficiaries of HMIF’s ‘Drive4Progress’ initiative.
An MoU in this regard was signed between Anirudh Arun, Co-Founder & CEO - BluSmart Fleet and Gurusharan Khurana, President - ‘Navjyoti Transforming Lives & Careers Society’ NGO, in the presence of Puneet Anand, AVP & Vertical Head, Corporate Affairs, Hyundai Motor India, and Soon Sang Hong, Domain Advisor, Corporate Affairs, Hyundai Motor India.
Speaking at the collaboration, Puneet Anand, AVP & Vertical Head, Corporate Affairs, Hyundai Motor India, said, “Under Hyundai’s global brand vision of ‘Progress for Humanity’, Hyundai Motor India Foundation's collaboration with Navjyoti and BluSmart inspires inclusion by providing employment opportunity to women drivers. It reflects our determination for women empowerment and skill development, in alignment with the government's overarching vision to address the growing demand for a skilled workforce in India. By equipping women with the necessary skills and support, this collaboration underscores the potential for positive social change and the importance of corporate social responsibility in promoting gender inclusivity, with participation of women in traditionally male-dominated sectors.”
Anirudh Arun, Co-Founder & CEO, BluSmart Fleet, said, “BluSmart is the only ride-hailing service in India with a focused initiative to train, skill and empower women driver partners and provide them with a safe place to work. Our commitment towards gender inclusivity in the transportation sector is shown through our consistent efforts to onboard women driver partners onto our platform. Partnerships such as these are key to open up skilling and employment opportunities for women in this field. At BluSmart, our women driver partners are at the forefront of mobility, taking our mission of decarbonization to greater heights.”
“We are excited to join hands with BluSmart to promote women's participation in the transportation sector. By leveraging our expertise in creating robust training modules and HMIF's support for social impact, we aim to create a more inclusive and equitable transportation ecosystem. Through this program, we endeavor to empower women with the skills and opportunities they need to succeed as professional drivers,” added Gurusharan Khurana, President - Navjyoti Transforming Lives & Careers Society.
The collaboration is a part of HMIF’s social initiative ‘Drive4Progress’, a driver skill development initiative aimed at providing professional driver training and employment opportunities for youth. The project, launched in October 2023, aims to cover over 1,500 youth including a minimum of 30% women, from Haryana, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and West Bengal, over the next 3 years. HMIF, in collaboration with Navjyoti NGO, the implementation agency for the program, has envisaged to create a talent pool of trained drivers from Below Poverty Line (BPL) communities and equip them with the necessary skills to gain employment in the transportation sector.
According to officials, HMIF and Navjyoti plans to support the participants in obtaining a permanent driving license and helping graduating students to get certified by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) post successful completion of training and assessments.
