Auto unions ask govt to rein in app-based cab services

New Delhi: Unions of auto-rickshaw drivers in the city termed the AAP government's approval to hike in fares as “inadequate” and asked it to rein in unregulated app-based cab services.

Auto-rickshaw operators will not require any hike in fare if the government gives subsidy on CNG fuel, said Rajender Soni, general secretary of Delhi Auto-rickshaw Sangh. “Government’s fare revision is an inadequate move. 

It has not done anything on our main demand to check surging number of app-based taxis that have eaten into our passenger base,” Soni said. 

He said that government should give a subsidy of Rs 15 on CNG fuel, which is currently available at rate of Rs 45 per kg. 

The Delhi Auto-rickshaw Sangh also demanded a flat rate of Rs 10 per km, but it was not met, Soni said. “We cannot welcome this move as it will burden people,” he said.
 
The fare hike will further hit the auto-rickshaw drivers who have been facing difficulty in finding passengers due to a large number of app-based taxis on the road, said Kishan Verma, president of All Delhi Auto Taxi Congress Union. 

“The Delhi government's approval to fare hike is targeted to gain votes in Lok Sabha polls, and benefit the cab aggregators,” Verma charged.