The Karnataka App-based Staff’ Union, together with the Raghu Peace Auto Union, held a protest in Bengaluru towards penalising drivers for extra fees carried out by cab and auto aggregators.

The unions alleged that RTO officers have been ‘wrongfully focusing on drivers’ and issuing challans starting from ₹5,000 to ₹12,000.

“Aggregator corporations are charging passengers extra quantities, however RTO is penalising the drivers. The aggregators are imagined to observe the charges fastened by the federal government of Karnataka. As a substitute, they’re charging larger fares. The apps are taking the cash, and the penalty is falling upon the drivers,” mentioned Mohammed Inayath Ali from Karnataka App-based Staff’ Union.

Vital distinction

The federal government has fastened charges for autorickshaw rides — ₹30 for the primary 1.9 km, and ₹15 per further kilometre. That is set to be revised to ₹36 and ₹18, respectively, from August 1.

For cabs, the minimal fare ranges from ₹100 to ₹130, and the speed for each further kilometre ranges from ₹24 to ₹32, relying on the mannequin of the automobile.

A doc from the RTO, which was seen by The Hindu, confirmed that a minimum of 9 cabs and 25 autos working with aggregators have been recorded as charging excess fares on July 21. Whereas the distinction between the government-fixed charge and the fare charged by the app for cabs was round ₹250, within the case of autos, it went as much as round ₹495 in a single case.

Challans not withdrawn

“For the previous eight days, officers have been cracking down on drivers. If the driving force is bodily demanding extra money than what’s being displayed on the app, penalise them. As a substitute, they’re being fined for the surplus cash that’s being charged by the app corporations when officers ought to truly be taking the aggregators to job,” Mr. Ali remarked.

The drivers alleged that, in the course of the protest, the officers promised to withdraw the challans. Nonetheless, they haven’t acted on it. Some famous that just a few platforms have agreed to reimburse the challan quantity.

Transport Division officers weren’t accessible for remark.