Auto unions divided over latest fare hike

Auto unions divided over latest fare hike
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: A 100-strong group from the CITU-Auto Drivers Union staged a protest on MG Road on Monday, demanding that the auto fare hike be revised.
“We are not very happy. We would have liked Rs 16 as minimum and Rs 8/km. But that has not happened. We would like the DC to consider our alternative proposal of Rs 12 for the first one-and-a-half km and then Rs 8/km thereafter,’’ union member Sreenivas Murthy said.
On the other hand, the Adarsha Auto and Taxi Drivers Union/Auto Drivers Union Federation (AUDF) has welcomed Rs 14 as minimum fare and then Rs 7/km, though the union would have liked the minimum fare to be Rs 15. “But a hike has been effected and the issue is over. We are not part of the strike and we just want to get on with life. We don’t think it’s fair to go on protesting,’’ a union member said.
The CITU-Auto Drivers Union is also demanding the minimum distance travelled be reduced from 2 km to one-and-a-half km, and the minimum fare be raised to Rs 8 from Rs 7. “We cannot get things done by force. We will, however, express our opposition every now and then until our demands are met,’’ Murthy added.