Mumbai transport: 2,000 autos seized, errant drivers hauled up in crackdown

The drive has taken action against drivers plying without proper documents, licences and badges, and charging excessive fares from passengers

MUMBAI: The Mumbai police has launched a special drive to crack down on errant auto-rickshaw drivers, seizing more than 2,000 black-and-yellow three-wheelers and taking action against drivers for various violations.

2,000 autos seized, errant drivers hauled up in crackdown

The drive, launched in early December, has taken action against drivers plying without proper documents, licences and badges, and charging excessive fares from passengers. Police have seized more than 2,000 autos that were being driven without permits. Errant drivers have been fined for minor offences but charged under xxxxx and xxx for serious violations.

The joint drive, with the Regional Transport Office (RTO), is focusing on auto drivers plying from outside railway stations and major junctions. “We receive regular complaints about auto drivers operating outside railway stations harassing customers by overcharging, refusing to ply during peak hours, especially in Bandra East, Bandra-Kurla Complex, Andheri and Jogeshwari East,” said a senior police official.

Statistics provided by the RTO reveal that in the city’s eastern suburbs, more than 50,000 auto-rickshaws were checked during the drive and 747 auto-rickshaws were seized. Action was also taken against 855 drivers for plying without a permit; 5,524 for plying without their uniform and not carrying badges; 1,201 for driving without a licence; and 873 for plying without a fitness certificate.

In the western region, 212 auto-rickshaws have been seized. Action has also been taken against 391 drivers for refusing to ply. At least 1,537 auto drivers were penalised for not wearing uniforms and carrying badges, and 370 drivers for carrying more than three passengers.

In addition, 39 auto drivers were nabbed for charging excessive fares, 974 for not carrying proper documents, and 24 whose registrations were cancelled.

“We have registered a few extortion cases against drivers at the airport for charging extra fares from passengers,” said a senior officer. Hundreds of autos were inspected in other busy areas such as the domestic airport and outside railway stations, and action is being taken against them with the help of RTO officials, said the officer.

In Zone 12, which encompasses Goregaon to Dahisar East, police seized nine auto-rickshaws and nabbed 46 drivers for plying without permits, while 679 drivers were found driving without wearing their uniforms and badges. In addition, 295 drivers were found without licences, 10 without valid fitness certificates. 522 for carrying excess passengers, 697 for parking outside designated stands, and 228 for refusing to ply, said a senior official.

In Zone 11, which encompasses nine police stations from Goregaon to Gorai, police seized 44 autos and 54 were nabbed without permits, while 514 drivers were caught driving without wearing uniforms and carrying badges. Additionally, 168 auto drivers were found riding without licences and 36 without fitness certificates, while 249 were nabbed for carrying excess passengers.

During the drive, police found that in places such as Kurla, auto drivers were charging passengers three times more than the meter fare – ₹150 for a trip from Kurla railway station to Bandra Kurla Complex, against the meter fare of ₹50, said a passenger who commutes daily on the route.

The drive is ongoing and the surprise checks are carried out at different times in different localities, across both the western and eastern suburbs. Last week, the crackdown saw teams fanning out in Bandra East, where police and RTO officials checked around 100 auto-rickshaws. Around 20 autos were found plying without valid documents and permits, said an RTO official.

According to Shashank Sharad Rao, president, Mumbai Auto Rickshaw Taximen’s Union, “There are at least 30,000 autorickshaws in the suburbs that are plying illegally. Most of them ply in Bandra East, Bandra Terminus, Andheri, Santacruz, Jogeshwari and Malwani, on shared routes.”

He said that during such crackdowns, these auto drivers usually stay off the roads. “The RTOs need to have a dedicated team that will nab illegal vehicles on the road,” Rao said. Another union leader said the RTO increase their vigilance during morning and evening peak hours, when these drivers ferry more than three passengers.