Tuk-tuk India rally ‘shows what women can achieve’

A woman who is travelling 1,000 km across India in a tuk-tuk said bringing joy to people along the way is “quite the experience”.

Claire Jenkins from the Forest of Dean, in Gloucestershire, is part of the Sisterhood Rickshaw Rally, 60 women journeying from Chennai to Goa.

The group aims to raise £350,000 to support projects in Chennai to empower women and girls, including the construction of safe, weather-resistant classrooms.

The rally, which takes place around International Women’s Day on Saturday, is “a bold statement of what women can achieve together”, the group said.

Speaking to BBC Radio Gloucestershire, Ms Jenkins said she had experienced her tuk-tuk breaking down but had got on the road again and was now approaching Bangalore.

“We’ve done 175 km so far, so we’re now driving through a lot more rural areas,” Ms Jenkins said.

“We’ve got 18 tuk-tuks and 60 women, which causes quite the riots. We’ve got a lot of people driving alongside us, waving, and it’s great to be able to share some joy with people.

“It’s been quite the experience.”

During the journey, which is due to finish on Wednesday, the women have kept their spirits high through “tuk-tuk-aoke”.

“We have a speaker and we sing songs all of the way, incredibly badly,” she said.

“And when our speaker ran out yesterday, we were doing primary school bangers like All Things Bright and Beautiful.”

The rally is made up of female entrepreneurs and has raised more than £90,000 so far.

Ladies Circle India and Round Table India identified three women and girls’ projects for the funds to be donated to.

As well as the weather-resistant classrooms, it will also go towards giving skills training to young women to allow them to achieve economic independence, and improving maternal healthcare.