Cabs and autos in Hyderabad are likely to be unavailable on May 19, Thursday, as associations of taxi and auto drivers have called for a day-long protest with various demands related to cab and auto fares amidst rising fuel prices, including fixing of digital fare meters. The Telangana State Taxi and Drivers Joint Action Committee, Auto Drivers’ JAC and Lorry Drivers’ JAC are among the associations taking part in the protest. Protesting drivers have planned to surround the Khairatabad RTA office on Thursday morning.
On behalf of various unions and associations of cab, taxi and auto drivers including ridesharing apps like Ola and Uber, the Telangana State Taxi and Drivers’ JAC have written to the Principal Secretary (Transport) and the Transport Commissioner of Telangana with a list of requests, saying the situation of drivers has turned desperate. They demanded that the Telangana government amend travel fares according to current fuel prices, fixing fare rate per km with a base fare not below Rs 22 to Rs 25 per km, and a competitive rate not below 50% of the base fare. They have requested an increase in the rates for aggregators, pre-paid taxis, and cabs hired by IT companies and travel agencies too.
Their demands also include the constitution of a high-level committee for fixing cab fares, a new rate chart for all vehicles engaged by different app-based aggregators and IT companies, travel agencies and others, and the implementation of free of cost digital fare meters for taxis “so the exploitation of the drivers by different companies can be addressed.” The representation from Shaik Salauddin, Chairman of the Telangana State Taxi and Drivers JAC, also mentioned that the fares for hiring private vehicles by government organisations must be reconsidered amid rising fuel prices, as these rates were last fixed in 2017.
They have also demanded fixed working hours for drivers, with a cap of eight to 10 hours a day, and the constitution of a Drivers’ Welfare Board for all transport categories. There is also a demand for a cap on the number of new aggregator vehicles on the road in Telangana, to deal with traffic congestion and pollution.