Union leader Shanshank Rao from the Mumbai Autorickshawmen’s Union (MAU) has declared that it will hold a protest rally against the decision to raise the cost of an auto rickshaw permit from Rs 200 to
Union leader Shanshank Rao from the Mumbai Autorickshawmen’s Union (MAU) has declared that it will hold a protest rally against the decision to raise the cost of an auto rickshaw permit from Rs 200 to Rs 15,000. The protest will be held in Bandra outside the transport commissioner’s office.
Terming the high cost for the permit unethical, he said, “We are protesting against the state’s decision to hike the cost of a permit from Rs 200 to Rs15,000. People who buy these permits come from low income families and cannot afford such a steep increase.”
Mr Rao said that an auto driver who wants to own his own vehicle and not split the earnings from the fare with someone is already struggling to put together the Rs 1.5 lakh to buy an autorickshaw.
Mr Rao said that the protest is also against the government’s failure to bring in app-based taxi aggregators such as Ola and Uber under the ambit of law as promised. “The draft carving out the rules for these aggregators have been out for months now, but the actual rule is not seen anywhere. We were promised by the state that they will get them under the ambit of the transport ministry soon,” he added.
