In perhaps the first of its kind service in the country, a novel ‘autorickshaw at reasonable fare’ scheme was introduced by Consumer Protection council of Tamil Nadu today to provide relief to harassed commuters.

S Pushpavanam, Council Secretary said they decided to meet the long felt need of people to operate meter fixed autorickshaws. Initially the council would operate seven three wheelers in the city with a minimum fare of Rs 20 and Rs 10 per KM for the additional distance after minimum fare distance is crossed, he said.

The target is to operate 100 such autorickshaws within a year.

“The fare charged by metered autorickshaws would be one third of that charged unfairly by autorickshaw drivers.

Drivers should be able to do drive their vehicles for eight hours a day, to earn Rs 15,000 a month,” he said.

“It is perhaps for the first time in the country that the consumer council itself has taken up the issue (of overcharging by autorickshaw drivers),” Pushpavanam said.

The secretary said more people were willing to operate metered autorickshaws. As of now there are 6,000 autorickshaws in the district, of which 600 were not registered or licensed.

Pushpavanam said police had assured him all unlicensed autorickshaw stands in the city would be removed. He alleged that union leaders collected upto Rs 10,000 for providing parking slots in such stands. “The money neither goes to the government nor to the drivers. Some middlemen gobble up money.”

The council had been fighting to operate metered autorickshaws for 38 years.

He said the cost of an autorickshaw was Rs 1.25 lakh. The council was willing to get bank loans if anybody came forward to operate such autorickshaws and to get permit, registration, FC procedures at government rate without bribing officials.

“We have calculated the cost of operation and calibrated the meter taking into consideration the Petrol/diesel price, maintenance cost, registration, loan repayment, interest, he said.

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