Auto fares in Delhi up by Rs 1.5 per km, base charge will be now Rs 25

Auto rides will be dearer by over 18 per cent in Delhi as the AAP government on Friday cleared a proposal to hike the fares after a gap of seven years.
Auto rickshaws wait for passengers outside the New Delhi Railway station. | (Shekhar Yadav | EPS)
Auto rickshaws wait for passengers outside the New Delhi Railway station. | (Shekhar Yadav | EPS)

NEW DELHI: Auto rides will be dearer by over 18 per cent in Delhi as the AAP government on Friday cleared a proposal to hike the fares after a gap of seven years.

From existing Rs 8 per km, the rate is now fixed at Rs 9.5 per km.

The base fare will be Rs 25 for first 1.5 km instead of the existing limit of 2 km as per the revised new auto-rickshaw rate, Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot tweeted. He, however, did not mention the exact date since when the new fare would be implemented.

The move comes ahead of the fight for seven parliamentary seats in Delhi where 90,000-odd auto-rickshaw drivers comprise a strong vote bank for the Arvind Kejriwal-led party. Auto meters have to be re-calibrated once the transport department notifies the proposal, which is expected soon.

Gahlot termed the hike as “marginal” comparing it with prevailing auto fares in Mumbai.

“In Mumbai, the per km fare is Rs 12.2. So, it’s nominal hike in comparison,” he said.The fare revision committee had recommended an increase in waiting charges from current 50 paise per minute to 75 paise per minute, besides removing the cap of minimum wait of 15 minutes.

As per recommendation of the committee, waiting charge of 75 paise per minute will be applicable if an auto is kept waiting by the passenger, or it’s stuck in traffic, or moving at a speed of less than 6 km per hour during heavy traffic.  The existing night and luggage charges were maintained by the committee.

“This fare ‘hike’ can hardly be called an increase this step will largely have a negative impact on the auto drivers. I believe the government should not get into the business of deciding the fares. Also why is the AAP government silent on app-based cabs, which are lying illegally on the roads of Delhi, why no decision on the cabs” said Rakesh Aggarwal, secretary Nyay Bhoomi, NGO working for auto drivers.       

In 2013, the Delhi government had hiked the fares by 25 per cent, keeping in view the increase in prices of CNG and spare parts. The base fare then was raised from Rs 19 for the first 2 km to Rs 25 while the fare for every subsequent kilometre was raised from Rs 6.5 to Rs 8.

2013

  • Fare was hiked by 25 per cent.

  • Base fare was hiked to Rs 19.

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