Unaffordable journey

Jamshedpur, April 25: The phenomenal increase in auto-rickshaw fares has added to passengers’ woes.

With over 18,000 auto-rickshaws — the only viable mode of public transport — plying in the city, the fare hike took place following the rise of petrol and diesel six months ago.

Passengers usually negotiate the fare before boarding an auto, but with the absence of meters, they are at the mercy of auto-drivers who have started charging high rates.

Deputy commissioner of East Singhbhum Nitin Madan Kulkarni said if the auto-rickshaw operators’ body put forward an auto fare tariff for administrative approval, he would get it passed, if it is “people-friendly”.

Banna Gupta, the president of Jamshedpur Sikshit Berozgar Auto-rickshaw Association (JSBAA), admitted that there has been a change in attitude in auto-drivers pertaining to the fare.

He confessed he had received a lot of complaints from the public about the unusual fare.

“As the JSBAA president, I can formulate a moderate fare structure by convening a meeting of the auto-drivers, but the onus of implementing the fixed rate is on the district administration,” Gupta said.

Admitting that as there is no agreed and approved pattern of auto fare from one destination to another, Gupta said he would soon convene a meeting of representatives of different auto-rickshaw stands across the city.

After discussing the rates of different routes during the night and day, he would also inform the admini- stration for implementing charges, he said.

In most cases, people boarding an auto-rickshaw from the Tatanagar railway station face the ordeal of having to negotiate auto fares regularly.

For example, though the fare from the railway station to Bistupur during the day should be around Rs 40, auto-drivers charge around Rs 60.

During the night, the fare from the railway station to Bistupur goes up to the range of Rs 80 or Rs 90. The greater the distance, the more erratic the fares, said regular commuters.

Drivers claim the practice to charge more at night is common but do not give specific reasons behind the hike.