Chennai, Oct 28 (PTI) Tamil Nadu BJP chief spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy on Wednesday dismissed the state government’s revised minimum autorickshaw fare of Rs 50 as a “joke” and an “eyewash”, claiming that the official rate bore little resemblance to fares charged to passengers.
Criticising the state authorities, Thirupathy alleged that the administration had failed to enforce basic regulations governing autorickshaw operations.
He said traffic police and transport officials had been unable to curb violations by auto drivers, including overcharging, driving without prescribed uniforms, using mobile phones while driving and routinely travelling on the wrong side of the road.
His remarks came after the state government revised autorickshaw meter fares following a gap of 13 years. Questioning the move, Thirupathy said the official rates did not reflect the ground reality.
“As if the auto charges were Rs 30 or Rs 40 before, it was more than Rs 50,” he told PTI Videos, adding that those who had fixed the rate at Rs 50 were “living in a dream world”.
The BJP leader also alleged that commuters routinely faced harassment, with autorickshaw drivers demanding exorbitant fares, behaving disrespectfully and refusing to take passengers to their requested destinations.
Thirupathy said revising meter fares would serve little purpose without strict enforcement of the rules.
“First you implement them and then come back here,” he said, arguing that fares charged in practice had been well above Rs 50 for years and that the revised rate was therefore merely a superficial exercise. PTI JR SSK
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.