Fare hike can wait: State
The state has temporarily spared Mumbaikars from facing another auto and taxi fare hikes. In a litigation challenging the impending fare hikes, the state government on Tuesday informed the Bombay high court that it would not increase the fares until June 12.
A division bench of Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and A.A. Sayed was hearing a petition filed by the Mumbai Grahak Panchayat, challenging the implementation of the recommendations of the Hakim Committee regarding the fare hike of autorickshaws and taxis.
The petitioners had in a previous hearing informed the court that the government was to hike the fares again on May 1 as per the Hakim Committee guidelines. However, on Tuesday, advocate general Darius Khambata assured the court that the government will refrain from hiking the fares till the court decides on the petition.
The bench then directed the state government to address the grievances of all the parties, citizens, taxi and autorickshaw owners. “Give us a feeling that the voice of the consumer has been heard before a decision is taken on the fare hike. There might be a large number of people using autos and taxis to travel than those who ply them,” said Justice Chandrachud. The court directed the government to hear representatives of the petitioner NGO and posted the matter to June 12.
Last year, when the autorickshaw and taxi drivers had declared that they would strike if the government failed to increase the fare, the state government had appointed a one-man committee of former Union secretary P.M.A Hakim to decide the fare hike formula.
Pursuant to that, the Hakim Committee had used parameters such as interest and depreciation, insurance and taxes, fuel, repairs and maintenance and cost of living to calculate basic fare. It had recommended fixing minimum fare for taxis and autorickshaws at 1.5 times the basic fare for a kilometer and also recommended fixing the minimum distance at 1.5 km from 1.6 km.
Post new comment