CNG price hike: Taxi unions demand hike in base fare to ₹30

MUMBAI: Black and yellow taxi drivers have demanded an increase in the base fare citing surging prices of CNG, which were hiked recently

MUMBAI: Black and yellow taxi drivers have demanded an increase in the base fare citing surging prices of CNG, which were hiked recently. The unions have approached the Maharashtra government seeking to increase the minimum fare from ₹25 to ₹30.

HT Image

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) retails for ₹67 per kg in Mumbai. Earlier on April 1, the state government had slashed Value Added Tax (VAT) on CNG leading to a reduction in prices from ₹66 per kg to ₹63.50.

In a letter to chief transport secretary Ashish Kumar Singh, the union has stated that the taxi drivers are suffering from lockdown and coronavirus and cannot afford the loss caused by the increase in CNG prices.

“The CNG price has increased from ₹51 to ₹67 per kg since August 25, 2021. The minimum taxi fare was increased from March 2021 from ₹22 to ₹25. Surprisingly, after the last fare revision, the CNG prices have increased by more than 35 percent. As per the Khatua committee report, if the CNG prices are increased by more than 25 percent the taxi fare should be revised without any delay. We, therefore, request you to kindly revise the minimum taxi fare from ₹25 to ₹30 immediately,” states the letter by AL Quadros, general secretary of the Mumbai Taximen’s Union.

Meanwhile, the autorickshaw unions have stated that they will be asking the government to reduce the CNG prices immediately.

“We will not ask for an immediate fare hike because we know along with the autorickshaw drivers, the citizens are also facing financial constraints due to coronavirus. We will ask the government to immediately reduce the CNG prices and bring a cap and monitor the CNG prices,” said Shashank Rao, president, Mumbai AutorickshawMen’s Union.