Hit hard by TSRTC free rides, autowalas stage protests

Hyderabad: Auto-rickshaw drivers are up in arms after the State government introduced free travel for women in the state-owned TSRTC buses. The auto rickshaw drivers staged a dharna and alleged that the free ride for women in the public transport has dented their income. They stated that the government made the decision without considering its impact on their alternate transport system.

The auto drivers staged a protest at various places across the city. The auto-rickshaw drivers claimed that their livelihood whose daily income was affected as the women opt for the free bus ride. According to the auto drivers, there are nearly two lakh autos running on the roads of twin cities Hyderabad and Secunderabad and majority of the working women depend on the share autos to go to their workplaces or catch the buses. The auto drivers’ rue that they were barely earning due to the inflation and the government’s decision has taken away their only source of income. The auto-rickshaw drivers point out their income came down by 40 to 50 per cent a day. “Women took sharing autos to commute from office or educational campuses to their homes in the evening. After free bus travel started, we are not doing any business,” complained Shaik Riyaz, an auto driver from Nampally.

Satish Reddy, another auto driver said “The driver has to pay Rs 400 rent a day for an auto rickshaw and spend an equal amount on fuel. Now our earnings have considerably come down,” he pointed out.

The City Auto & Motor Cab Drivers Welfare Society President Mahmood Hussain Makke said that the auto rickshaw drivers had expected a solution to their long-pending problems in the newly formed government. Instead, with this free travel it has been creating a double whammy to the drivers. The decisions being taken by the Congress government were against the auto-rickshaw drivers affecting our livelihood,” he said.

Mahmood Hussain said that however, the drivers are facing difficulties in livelihood as there has been no increase in fare for the past several years. We demand the State government to increase the fare. Moreover, the drivers demand for the permit of 15,000 autos yearly. “This has been pending for a long time and the previous government accepted to stretch the permit of 10,000 autos on the driver’s memorandum, but the election notification was announced, and it was put on hold.” We demanded the newly formed government to issue yearly permits for 15,000 autos. “As a financial assistance, we demand the government to finance the vehicle from the government-led bank like SBI which will reduce the drivers burden on monthly installments and interest rates. The bank loan is comparatively low as per the auto financers,” pointed out Mahmood Makke.

Mahmood said there are over two lakh auto-rickshaw plying in Greater Hyderabad limits, and more than 50,000 drivers take auto on rental basis.