Another auto permit may be revoked for e-meter tampering

A day after an autorickshaw permit holder lost his permit permanently for having tampered with the electronic meter (e-meter), another one from the eastern suburb may face similar action.

A day after an autorickshaw permit holder lost his permit permanently for having tampered with the electronic meter (e-meter), another one from the eastern suburb may face similar action.

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Special RTO squads formed to detect errant drivers had found two autorickshaws — one from the western suburbs and the other from the eastern — with rigged e-meters. While the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Transport Authority (MMRTA) cancelled the permit of one Dilip Sitaram Nimunkar, RTO sources said they had initiated action against the permit holder of the auto from the eastern suburbs.

“We filed an FIR against an autorickshaw driver with the Mulund police station in the first week of July. We have issued a show-cause notice to the permit holder,” said a senior RTO official.

The official said they would send a proposal to the MMRTA for cancellation of permit only after receiving the permit holder’s reply and an inquiry report.

A flying squad from the transport commissioner’s office also caught a meter repairer tampering with an electronic meter at Ghatkopar. The squad had laid a trap with the help of an autorickshaw driver, an RTO official said.

After three instances of e-meters being tampered with came to light, the transport department sent out a circular asking RTOs to file FIRs and cancel permits of erring taxi and auto owners.

Fare hike report may be given today

Mumbai: The much-awaited Hakim committee report on the fare hike formula for taxis and autos is likely to be submitted to the state government on Friday. Former union secretary PMA Hakim, who comprises the one-man committee, arrived in the city on Thursday.

He is expected to meet state transport secretary Shailesh Sharma to submit the report. Though, the report is not expected to affect fares immediately, a tariff rise is expected in a month’s time, said sources. The report also makes recommendations on share-rickshaw schemes and reducing the minimum distance slab.

HTC