Mumbai auto, taxi strike called off after minister promises action within 10 days

The indefinite auto and taxi strike announced by the unions in Mumbai from September 15 seeking fare hike has been postponed after a meeting with the Maharashtra Industry Minister Uday Samant. More than two dozen representatives of various taxi and rickshaw unions in the city met the minister on Tuesday and discussed their demands. After the meeting, the union leadership announced that they decided to postpone the proposed strike.

"The industry minister has assured us that his government will take a concrete decision for regulating several issues of rickshaw and taxi drivers including fare hikes within 10 days. So, we have decided to postpone our strike as of now," the auto taxi union leaders informed the media after the meeting. The union were demanding a fare hike and asked the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Transport Authority (MMRTA) to take a decision soon. While the minimum fare for the metered taxis is currently Rs 25, in their written petition to Chihed Minister Eknath Shinde the taxi union demanded that the fares should be revised to Rs 30. Similarly, rickshaw unions are also demanding a revision in minimum fare from Rs 21 to Rs 23.

In their meeting with minister Samant, the unions also pushed for a 40 percent subsidy on CNG gas used for auto rickshaws and taxis. Until this demand is met, an interim increase in the fare of rickshaws and taxis based on the recommendation of the Khatuwa Committee should be given, they asked the minister. As per taxi unions, over the last few months, CNG prices have increased by almost 70 per cent but the fares have remained the same making it difficult for auto and taxi drivers to make ends meet.