Police have asked taxi touts harassing passengers and illegally parking cabs on the Calcutta airport premises, as well as operators of unauthorised stalls, to clear out within the next few days.
Sources said the move followed a letter from airport authorities to the NSCBI Airport police station seeking action against “illegally parked vehicles and encroachments”. The letter was issued recently, after the BJP government came to power in Bengal.
“We have written to the police seeking removal of illegally parked cars and unauthorised stalls. We periodically raise these issues with them,” Vikram Singh, director of the Calcutta airport, said on Wednesday.
An airport official said similar eviction drives had been carried out earlier, but the vehicles and stalls usually returned within days.
“It is the police’s responsibility to stop illegal activities. They will have to conduct drives, and we will provide support,” the official said.
The problem of taxi touts at the airport is long-standing.
Many of the cabs operated by touts remain parked opposite the old domestic terminal building. The space is meant for Yatri Sathi cabs and taxis registered with the Bidhannagar Commissionerate’s prepaid taxi service. These vehicles are allowed to park there free of cost and move to pickup points near the new terminal when slots become available, an airport official.
However, several cars controlled by touts occupy the area illegally.
Airport sources said that around 350 such vehicles remain parked opposite the old domestic terminal building.
“The touts first negotiate fares with passengers arriving in Calcutta. Once the price is finalised, they bring the vehicle from the parking area,” an airport official said.
Passengers have alleged that touts charge five to six times the normal fare.
Yellow taxis are also frequently seen parked illegally in the outermost lane at the arrivals level outside the terminal. Many of these taxis display “Yatri Sathi” stickers, but passengers and airport officials have alleged that drivers often refuse app bookings and instead demand exorbitant fares from commuters.
Stalls
The airport authorities are also targeting unauthorised stalls on airport land. Officials said the stalls repeatedly returned even after eviction drives.
A new terminal building covering 2 million square metres has been planned opposite the old domestic terminal. Several unauthorised stalls have come up on the land earmarked for the project.
“They have been evicted several times, but they return within days. Once they are removed now, we plan to barricade the area,” an airport official said.
At least 34 illegal stalls had appeared on airport land in recent years, allegedly with Trinamool patronage. The stalls are made of flammable materials. Some operators use LPG cylinders and kerosene stoves in the open.
Last week, railway authorities, the Railway Protection Force and the Government Railway Police carried out drives against hawkers around Howrah and Sealdah stations. Around 200 stalls were demolished during those operations. At Howrah station, a payloader was used to remove the structures.