FOR A FARE RIDE

Activists seek 8 per km as min auto fare Somit Sen TNN  Mumbai: Consumer rights activists have submitted a fresh petition before the Hakim Committee, demanding thatthe minimum autofarein Mumbai should be reduced from Rs 12 (for 1.6 km) to just Rs 8 (for 1 km). The activists from Mumbai Grahak Panchayat (MGP) have also demanded telescopic fares, meaning the longer you travel, the lesser you pay. They want the fare for every additional km to reduce from Rs 7 to Rs 6.5 for long journeys.      "We are fighting in the interest of millions of commuters who travel by autos daily. We want them to get quality service at an affordable  price," said S Deshpande of the MGP. "The demand by auto unions to make flag down fare as Rs 20 for the first 2 km is absurd and highly exaggerated. It deserves to be rejected outright by the committee."      In his petition before the Hakim panel, Deshpande said that a permitowner, after buying an auto for Rs 1.4 lakh, made a net earning of Rs 72,960 in the very first year. This was more than 52% returns on investment and that he recoveredtheentireinvestment in less than two years. "The permit holder collects rent of Rs 200 per shift daily from auto drivers—which comes to Rs 1.2 lakh (for a 300-day run) annually. After deducting expenses towards loan interest, repairs, maintenance and taxes, which comes to Rs 47,040 per annum, he can recover the entire investment in less than two years. Why should the burden of Rs 200 rent be passed on to consumers?" he asked.      Auto unions had considered this aspect of rent (Rs 200 per shift) while demanding the fare hike.      The MGP also submitted its own findings and calculations, which indicated that the vehicle costs would be Rs 1.14 per km, cost of living index Rs 4.33 while the fuel cost Rs 1.29 and taxes/insurance, etc will be 17 paise. The total cost would be Rs 6.93, rounded to Rs 7. "For the first flag  down, an incentive of Re 1 should be given to the driver. We, therefore, demand a basic fare of Rs 8 per km," he stated.      He also ïnformed the committee that for long distance travel, there was better operational mileage and the expenses were low. "So the per kilometre tariff should be reduced from Rs 7 to Rs 6.5 after the first 10 km," he suggested.      The petition further stated, "Commuters are overcharged for every 200 metres in the present system. This is because the drop in the meter takes place in advance of the actual distance travelled."      The MGP also insisted that there should be no fare hike unless e-meters were installed in all autos and the drivers improved the quality of service in Mumbai.