Special traffic chowkies at rail terminals to deal with unscrupulous auto, taxi drivers

Passengers arriving at Mumbai’s major railway terminals would now have recourse to a special traffic department of the Government Railway Police (GRP), which has been restarted after 12 years, to deal with unscrupulous autorickshaw and taxi drivers who refuse their fare or overcharge them

Passengers arriving at Mumbai’s major railway terminals would now have recourse to a special traffic department of the Government Railway Police (GRP), which has been restarted after 12 years, to deal with unscrupulous autorickshaw and taxi drivers who refuse their fare or overcharge them.

Passengers arriving at Mumbai’s major railway terminals would now have recourse to a special traffic department of the GRP to deal with unscrupulous autorickshaw and taxi drivers who refuse their fare or overcharge them.

A circular issued by the Mumbai Government Railway Police commissioner on November 17 stated that each of the city’s five major terminals, where long distance trains halt, will have a chowkie (station) with a sanctioned strength of 12 officers and 10 constables to deal with passenger complaints against errant drivers.

These chowkies will come up at Bandra, Kurla LTT, Mumbai Central, and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and Dadar stations, where one officer of Assistant Police Inspector level and two constables will be present at all times. Drivers flouting rules would be penalised under the Motor Vehicles Act 1988. The headquarters for the traffic wing of the GRP will be stationed at Dadar station, between platforms 5 and 6 (Central line) where most long-distance trains halt.

“At present we are conducting awareness drives to alert the drivers about the new department who would be keeping a check on them,” GRP commissioner Quaiser Khalid said.

For 55-year-old theatre actor Radheshyam Sharma, a resident of Vikhroli, who travels on express trains once a week, this was good news. “Every time I get off a train, I take a deep breath as I know there would be at least 20 rickshaw or taxi drivers who will refuse a fare to Vikhroli or demand four times the actual fare. Dragging my luggage across the parking lots and convincing an auto or taxi driver to drop me home takes me at least two hours,” Sharma said.

Mulund resident Madhu Kotian recalled a similar experience after he returned with his family from a vacation in Goa. After they got off at Bandra, they took an auto home. However, the driver overcharged them for the ride, the 64-year-old said. “Unaware I am a Mumbai resident, the auto driver took me through longer routes and was roaming in circles around Bandra East just to extract more money from me. I didn’t say a word and let him drive. When I reached Mulund after more than two hours, he asked me to pay ₹500,” said Kotian.

“The mafia of these drivers is so strong outside the Terminals that that they don’t even allow Ola or Uber cabs to enter the premises blocking their way by parking haphazardly especially at odd hours when local trains are shut,” said Shashi Parekar, a Vasai resident. The 61-year-old said that he has given in to the demands of drivers who have asked for twice the money to take him home. “Many times, I have paid according to the taxi driver’s demand as I had no choice but to reach Vasai safely,” he said.

There are at least 50 to 60 taxis parked outside the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) at any given point of time. At Mumbai Central — where more than 30 outstation trains are either entering or leaving the station in a day — hundreds of passengers disembark from each train. At Dadar, over 31 trains bring more than 50,000 commuters every day [CONFIRM] to the station. At least 52 trains halt at Kurla Lokmanya Tilak terminus where more than 150,000 passengers alight and board the trains daily. Commuters across all these terminals said that they are often refused a ride because drivers prefer to take passengers who travel to the outskirts. Many commuters complained that “a mafia” overcharged passengers, asking for fare that was several times higher than what the metres permitted.

At Bandra terminus, where more than 40 express trains halt in a day, the footfall is 50,000 passengers daily.

“Just like the system at the airport, we are now organising travel for commuters who have already travelled long distances and just want to reach their home without hassle,” said Police Inspector Suresh Bhale, in charge of the traffic division of the GRP.

“Drunk drivers will be presented before the court if we get any complaints from passengers,” Bhale said. Rash and negligent drivers would also be penalised with fines varying from ₹200 to ₹2000.

When contacted AL Quadros, leader of Taxi Union said that the drivers are following the rules but it becomes difficult to follow the five minute rule (taxi or auto drivers can stop inside the premises to drop a passenger onky for five minutes) as the passengers have heavy luggage or even struggle for change at times. “We will surely oppose if the GRP traffic too flows this rule,” said Quadros.