Autocrats rip off City commuters

Autocrats rip off City commuters
Bangalore, R Venkatesh, dhns:
Autorickshaw drivers here have hiked fares, giving short shrift to all legal requirements.

Though the government is yet to take a decision on their plea for a hike in fares in view of the spiralling auto LPG prices, many autorickshaw drivers on Tuesday went ahead and implemented their own ‘revised’ fares.

Autorickshaw drivers waved photostat copies of purportedly ‘revised’ fare charts, and made it clear that passengers could board the vehicle only if they were ready to pay the “revised” rates. The charts carried no official seal of sanction. Under a scribbled headline reading “Revised rates have been changed from (14/1/2008)”, it specified that the OR (presumably, Old Rates) of Rs 12 minimum fare has been changed to Rs 15, besides providing new fares for every rupee of old tariff.

“It’s daylight robbery. The drivers are rude. They thrust a white sheet in our face, if we query them,” said Kannu, a regular commuter. Anand, a driver, confessed, “The fake tariff sheet is available for Rs 3. From January 1, we are paying Rs 35.38 for one litre of auto gas and with oil, it touches Rs 42.50.”

WE’LL ACT: POLICE

Additional Commissioner (Traffic & Security) K C Ramamurthy said that he has received complaints on the fake “revised” auto tariff. “We have given instructions to book erring drivers.” The auto driver unions too have termed the “revised” tariff charts as “cheating”.

Adarsha Auto-Taxi Drivers’ Union General Secretary B S Narayan Murthy told Deccan Herald, “It’s a disgrace. Some unscrupulous elements have circulated the ‘revised’ tariff charts and are cheating commuters. We are meeting the Bangalore Urban Deputy Commissioner on January 17 to press for a minimum fare of Rs 15 and Rs 7 per kilometre. We will wait for seven days and then chalk out our plan of action.” The Autorickshaw Driver’s Union and the Auto Drivers’ Unions Federation have also asked drivers not to demand excess fare.