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]]>The demands include raising economic life of the CNG-auto rickshaw to 15 years from existing 11 years; raising deposit money to Tk 900 from Tk 600; fixing the passenger fare at Tk 40 for first two kilometres from Tk 25; Tk 10 for each next km from Tk 8 and waiting charge at Tk 2 per minute; cancelling payment of Tk 2,500 as advance income tax; and stopping police harassment in the name of document checking.
Dhaka Mahanagar CNG Autorickshaw Owners Association placed the demands at a press conference at the Bangladesh Photo Journalists Association Auditorium in the city.
President of the association Md Harun-ur-Rashid, general secretary ATM Nazmul Hasan and other leaders of the organisation were present at the press conference.
Reading out the charter of demands, Nazmul Hasan said they had called a similar strike in July last year with the same demands.
‘But following the assurance of the communications minister to review and consider our demands, we withdrew our action programme. But in last one year, the government virtually paid no heed to our demands which again forced us to opt for action programme,’ he said.
-With New Age input
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Hop on an auto-rickshaw, tell the driver where you want to go in the capital, go there and pay him what the meter says. This was probably the original idea behind installing meters in every CNG-run auto rickshaw in the capital. The authorities had presented city dwellers with a rosy picture indeed.A few years down the line the picture is very different. Now, city dwellers go out to work every morning and virtually beg auto rickshaw drivers to take them to their destinations.
Paying them as per the meter is a thing of the past. Now, one must haggle before getting into an auto rickshaw and one may consider oneself lucky even if the fare charged is just double that of the meter.
A ride to Kakrail from the city’s Farmgate should cost no more than Tk 60 on a CNG-run auto rickshaw considering even the heavy traffic, when waiting charges apply.
Fakhrul Islam recently had to pay Tk 130 when he along with his family went to visit his relatives in Kakrail.
Selin Cruze had even worse experience.
The embroidery artisan, who came to Dhaka from Natore to supply goods to a chain store, had to pay Tk 300 to go to Indira Road from near Gabtoli.
“I tried a number of CNGs [auto rickshaws are usually called CNGs] for about half an hour, but they declined to take us. The one that agreed to take us asked for so much that it was almost equal to the bus fare from Natore to Dhaka,” she told The Daily Star.
One can find thousands of people telling stories of a similar nature or even worse in the capital.
However, drivers say they cannot afford to follow the meter and charge more from the passengers because the owners of their vehicles charge them Tk 800 to Tk 1,150 a day. The government-fixed charge is Tk 600 a day.
Vehicle owners, however, claim that as prices of lubricants, spares and other materials required to smoothly run three-wheelers go high, charging drivers Tk 600 a day is not feasible. It is difficult for both drivers and owners of three-wheelers to go by the rates fixed in the meters by the government.
The rates of the meters were fixed in January last year.
To know about the reality on the ground, The Daily Star correspondent spoke to 10 drivers in the first week of July. Eight of them said the owners charged Tk 800 a day from them. The remaining two said the owners charged Tk 1,150 from two drivers driving the vehicle on two shifts a day.
“My vehicle owner, who started his business with only two auto rickshaws ten years ago, is now a multi-millionaire,” claimed a driver without giving his name. “They make huge profits, and its burden is passed on the passengers,” he said, adding that rise in the cost of operation was not an issue.
Nazmul Hasan, General Secretary of Dhaka Metropolitan CNG Auto-Rickshaw Owners’ Association, however, said the owners charged Tk 700, not Tk 600.
When pointed out that it was still Tk 100 more than the fixed rate, he told The Daily Star, “It is because prices of all essentials and even spares have gone up.”
There are some 13,000 three-wheelers in the capital now but in 2003 there were more than 25,000 two-stroke baby taxies here (auto rickshaws which have been taken off the streets), he said, citing the shortage of auto rickshaws a reason for drivers taking advantage of the situation and charging high and being reluctant to take passengers where they want to go.
Ayubur Rahman, chairman of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), said BRTA regularly uses its mobile courts to check these kinds of irregularities on the streets of the capital. He claimed that passengers often lie to the court about whether they were going to pay according to the meter.
“Please write in your paper and ask passengers to speak the truth so that we can take action against drivers who are not following the rules,” he pleaded.
Zyma Islam, a university student, said she was without a ride very early in the morning after she had told police that the driver was not charging her by the meter.
“I had a lot of luggage with me as I had reached Dhaka from Chittagong that morning. On my way to Dhanmondi from the bus stop in Malibagh around 7:00am, police stopped the three-wheeler and asked if the driver was charging me by the meter. As I said no, police fined the driver which caused delays. There was an altercation between the policemen and the driver. I eventually had to find other means to get to Dhanmondi,” she said.
Asked about owners’ charging drivers more than the fixed Tk 600 a day, Ayubur said it was true.
On drivers’ and owners’ demand for re-fixing the meters with new rates, he said the government has been considering everything.
As per the fare structure, effective since January 16 last year, city dwellers are to pay Tk 25 for the first two kilometres (km). The charge for each subsequent km is Tk 7 and the waiting charge per minute is Tk 1.25.
Meanwhile, Sharifuzzaman Sharif, general secretary of Citizens’ Solidarity, said increasing the number of public transport, reducing cars and strong enforcement of traffic rules were necessary to discipline the transport system in the capital.
Image (above) caption: Thirteen auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers are made to stand on one leg holding their ears at the plinth of the Santrash Birodhi Raju sculpture on Dhaka University campus yesterday. Fed up with drivers not willing to go wherever the passengers want and their refusal to use the meter, a few university students gave them the punishment. Photo courtesy: Palash Khan
Courtesy of The Daily Star
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]]>HC for action against errant 3-wheelers
The High Court (HC) yesterday asked the government to explain in three weeks why it should not be directed to take action against “private” CNG-run three-wheelers illegally operating on a commercial basis in and around the capital.
Issuing a suo moto rule, the HC asked the concerned authorities to explain why they should not be directed to cancel their registrations.
The court also asked the commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) to explain why he should not be directed to run a mobile court to identify such anomalies and enforce the relevant laws.
The HC bench of Justice Mohammad Bazlur Rahman and Justice Md Habibul Gani came up with the rule following a report published in The Daily Star on May 13, titled “Private yet up for hiring”.
According to the report, a large number of privately-owned auto rickshaws are plying the streets as vehicles for hire, ignoring their registration rules.
In spite of “private” inscribed on the grey three-wheelers, they wait at bus stops and major intersections looking for passengers.
However, the government did not allow any new registration of commercially-run auto rickshaws since 2004, considering the heavy traffic in the capital, the report stated, quoting Badruddouza, additional secretary of the communications ministry.
The communications secretary, chairman of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), DMP commissioner and deputy commissioner (DC) of Dhaka were made respondents to the rule.
Deputy Attorney General Amit Talukder read out The Daily Star report before the HC bench.
The court also directed the BRTA chairman to submit before the court, by June 5, a list containing registration numbers of auto rickshaws registered from 2004 till date under the Motor Vehicle Ordinance 1993.
Meanwhile, police claimed to have strengthened their drive against private CNG three-wheelers in the capital.
“I have given directions to take legal actions against private auto rickshaws running commercially” said Alamgir Kabir, DC of DMP (south), yesterday.
Police filed 267 cases against auto rickshaws from the south zone of DMP on Sunday, while around 200 cases are being filed against CNG-run three wheelers daily, on average, he informed.
-With The Daily Star input
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A large number of private CNG-run three-wheelers ply the city streets as vehicles for hire, flouting their registration rules.With the word “private” inscribed on their bodies, the grey vehicles wait at bus stops and major intersections for carrying passengers illegally.
Law enforcers hardly take any action against them as the drivers pay monthly bribes to some unscrupulous cops, complained leaders of auto-rickshaw owners’ association.
The government let over 13,000 CNG-run auto-rickshaws get registered as commercial vehicles between 2001 and 2004. But since 2004, it did not allow any new registration, considering the heavy traffic in the capital, said Badruddouza, additional secretary of the communications ministry.
Aiyubur Rahman, chairman of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), said the authorities had planned to issue 5,000 new registrations but they could not do so because of a case pending in a court.
In last eight years, no new registration has been given for CNG-run auto-rickshaws to run commercially. This has compounded the sufferings of the commuters as the demand for three-wheelers has increased over the years.
Cashing in on the situation, some influential people in collaboration with some crooked government officials manage registration for private three-wheelers and operate those commercially.
According to registration rules of private three-wheelers, they cannot transport passengers commercially.
Many commuters do not know that riding a private three-wheeler is illegal. Even those who are aware do not hesitate to violate the rule, as getting a ride to their destinations is all they care about during rush hours.
“Private three-wheelers are running commercially with the blessings of some law enforcers and government officials,” alleged ATM Nazmul Hasan, general secretary of Dhaka Metropolitan CNG Auto-Rickshaw Owners’ Association.
BRTA officials said 232 private CNG-run three-wheelers have been granted registration to ply the city streets. Commercial three-wheeler operators, however, claimed the number would be around 15 times more.
Around 3,000 more private auto-rickshaws are registered for plying only outside the metropolitan area, but they are entering the city daily and carrying passengers violating the rule, said Nazmul.
He said the shortage of auto-rickshaws in the capital would worsen, as around 6,000 vehicles will be withdrawn from the city streets in December next year on expiry of their economic life.
HM Iqbal, general secretary of Dhaka CNG Auto-rickshaw Malik Samity, said, “The communications minister has assured us of stern measures if any private auto-rickshaw is found operating on commercial basis. But no action has been taken yet.”
Abul Hossain, who drives a private auto-rickshaw, said he got the registration around 22 months ago with the help of a private bank official. He persuaded the BRTA staff saying that the vehicle would be used to carry some bank employees.
Asked about violation of law, he said, “Many people are doing this in the city. What’s wrong if I earn my livelihood from this?”
Another driver, Abdul Hannan, said he pays around Tk 150 daily to police as he runs his private three-wheeler commercially.
“In most cases I can manage police, but sometimes they file cases also. Two cases are pending now against my vehicle,” he mentioned.
Queried how he had obtained registration, he said the employees of a motor showroom in the city’s Eskaton area managed the registration and other necessary documents. The vehicle was purchased from that showroom.
Some drivers, however, are not worried at all about police action, as they claim their vehicles are owned by police officials.
“I am not anxious about police checking my registration documents, because the owner of this vehicle is a police official. If traffic police stop my auto-rickshaw, I give reference of my employer,” said a driver in the city’s Mirpur area, seeking anonymity.
Contacted, Alamgir Kabir, deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (traffic – south), said he has joined his office just a week ago and was not aware of private three-wheelers plying the city streets illegally.
Courtesy of The Daily Star
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]]>The order came in the wake of widespread complaints against the drivers of the three-wheelers that they were always reluctant to run on meter, rather charged extra-fare from the passengers, flouting the existing rate which was revised upwards in January 2011.
‘The concerned authorities have been asked to go tough against the delinquent auto-rickshaw drivers and owners who are flouting the government directives and rules. Police will go for action against them within a week,’ secretary of roads and highways division Md Mozammel Haque Khan told a meeting at the secretariat.
Communications minister Syed Abul Hossain presided over the meeting on implementation of the government-fixed fare chart for CNG auto-rickshaws and mandatory use of meter. Officials from the agencies concerned and representatives of the owners and drivers of the three-wheelers attended the meeting.
The passengers’ common allegation is that the drivers usually refuse to take them for a short distance while the drivers allege that they have to give additional money for deposit to the owners of the CNG auto-rickshaws.
The minister asked the drivers and owners of the three-wheelers to abide by the rules and the government’s directives in terms of fare and deposit as well so that the passengers do not suffer.
The secretary said that the garages of the CNG auto-rickshaws would be sealed if the owners were found realising extra-money for deposit from the drivers.
The meeting decided to strictly implement the motor vehicle ordinance of 1983 to restore discipline in the transport sector.
The owners are realising around Tk 700 to Tk 800 daily for each auto-rickshaw although the drivers are supposed to deposit Tk 600. Some owners are realising the deposit for two shifts in a day—from 7:00am to 7:00pm and from 7:00pm to 7:00am, said drivers’ representatives at the meeting.
General secretary of Dhaka Auto-rickshaw Owners’ Association Faridul Islam admitted that some owners were taking extra-money from the drivers as deposit. He assured the association’s cooperation in taking action against those flouting the government’s directives.
The government through a gazette notification on January 9, 2011, raised the CNG-run auto-rickshaw fare from Tk 14 to Tk 25 for the first two km and from Tk 6 to Tk 7 for each of the subsequent miles and the daily deposit was raised to Tk 600 from Tk 450.
Courtesy of New Age
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]]>As per the revised fare, commuters will have to pay Tk 25 instead of current Tk 14 for the first two kilometres (km). Also, the charge for each subsequent km will be Tk 7 instead of Tk 6 and the waiting charge per minute will be Tk 1.25 instead of Tk 1.
The new fare has been agreed upon in a tripartite agreement signed on Jan 9 between the government, CNG Auto-rickshaw Owners’ Association and the workers’ organisation.
According to the agreement the government also re-fixed the daily deposit of the auto-rickshaw owner at Tk 600 from Tk 450.
The government warned of stern measures like cancellation of route permit and driving licence, if the owners and drivers of CNG-run auto-rickshaw violate the rules.
The deal also says the passengers should hand over those drivers to the traffic police if found charging additional fare, tampering meter or refusing to run on a short distance. In addition, passengers can inform the police control room over phone about violation of rules.
However, less than 5,000 of the total 12,000 auto-rickshaws have received ‘meter ok’ clearance from Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, sources said.
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