The traffic police along with transport officials on Monday started a crackdown on auto drivers who did not have their permit or meters in working condition. At least two in 20 autos did not have a meter, it was found during the inspection.
Ragu, a mechanic who repairs auto meters, said he’s repairing over 100 meters in his shop and in the last few days he has been seeing a minimum of 25 to 30 auto drivers waiting in front of his shop at a time. “To change the minimum rate in a meter and do other maintenance work before handing it over, we charge about Rs 350, which is a one time charge. So, if the same driver comes the next time to change a battery, we won’t charge for the service,” the mechanic said.
Four big shops in Chintadripet, which is a prime area for auto and meter repair service centres, and shops in Vyasarpadi, Arumbakkam, Anna Nagar, Vadapalani and Thiruvanmiyur have been witnessing a huge rush for the past few days. The scene remained the same on Monday too. But there are also some auto drivers, who ended up shelling out more to buy a new meter as they got tired of waiting to get the old instrument fixed. Arumugam of Pallikaranai, who has been an auto driver for the past 15 years, said he had to pledge his wife’s jewellery to buy a new electronic meter at a cost of Rs 2100. “I got tired of going to the mechanic and waiting to get back my meter. So I bought a new one last week. On Monday, they were selling it for a higher price,” he claimed.
Transport officials have given auto drivers time until October 15 to calibrate their meters, while September 15 was the deadline to get the rate cards.