It’s a frustrating situation for commuters at Pune Railway Station as the prepaid rickshaw booth, which had been providing relief from overcharging, has been shut down. The closure, which happened during the busy Diwali travel period, has left passengers vulnerable to being overcharged by rickshaw drivers.
The booth, run by Rickshaw Mitra, had to stop operations after the traffic police decided not to renew its contract due to the enforcement of the model code of conduct. The prepaid rickshaw service was originally launched to tackle the problem of drivers asking for inflated fares from passengers. In the past 100 days, around 28,000 passengers benefited from fair and regulated fares through this service.
However, the agreement between Rickshaw Mitra and the Pravasi Seva Sangh, which managed the booth, expired on October 22, leading to the closure of the service. Dr. Keshav Kshirsagar, representing Rickshaw Mitra, expressed disappointment over the closure, stating that without a contract renewal, they cannot continue operations. He also mentioned that the honest rickshaw drivers who followed the rules will now lose out, while those involved in illegal fare hikes will return.
During the 100 days of operation, 1,211 rickshaw drivers participated in the prepaid system, serving over 13,000 passengers and collecting a total of ₹22,38,764 in fares. With the booth now closed, reports of rickshaw drivers demanding exorbitant fares from passengers have resurfaced at Pune Railway Station. Passengers have also raised concerns about the traffic police allegedly ignoring the ongoing extortion.
Many are calling for immediate intervention to address the issue and prevent further exploitation of travelers, especially during the festive season. It remains to be seen how this situation will be resolved and if an alternative solution will be put in place to protect passengers from overcharging.
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