City commuters hit hard by auto strike, rail snag

Monday turned out to be a nightmare for commuters in the suburbs as the Sharad Rao-led Mumbai Autorickshawmen’s Union went on a day’s strike.

Monday turned out to be a nightmare for commuters in the suburbs as the Sharad Rao-led Mumbai Autorickshawmen’s Union went on a day’s strike. Most of the 1.08 lakh autorickshaws went off roads from midnight, affecting commuters, senior citizens and students appearing for their examinations.

Adding to the woes, services on the harbour line were running late by at least half-an-hour and 25 trains were cancelled due to a snag in the overhead wire at Wadala station during the morning peak hours.

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The short supply created by the strike resulted in more pressure on BEST buses, which were crowded despite extra buses being deployed.

Meanwhile, with other unions opposing the strike, the Bombay high court asked the state government to provide police protection to auto drivers who were willing to ply.

A PIL had been filed by Mum-bai Grahak Panchayat seeking action against the union and drivers. A division bench of chief justice Mohit Shah and justice Nitin Jamdhar also issued notices to Rao’s union while adjourning the hearing till Tuesday.