The Road Transport Authority (RTA) board meeting, chaired by the District Collector, on Wednesday decided to issue permits to 2,542 autorickshaws in the district.
The Motor Vehicle Department has found out that only 1,458 autos were plying in the city.
Joint RTO Sadiq Ali said 5 per cent of the permits would be reserved for women, SC/ST and physically challenged categories. Months ago, more than 4,200 autos were given city permits. But only a few ply adhering to the criterion.
RTO B J Antony said the decision to issue permits to 2,542 autos came in the wake of adalat findings.
Applications for new permits will be received from next week. “What we infer is that the remaining autos might have either left the city or have been destroyed. The Motor Vehicle Department came out with the statistics after conducting the adalat nine times,” Antony said.
Once the new permits are issued, autos without city permits will be banned from operating in the city. Permits of autos that cannot be identified will be cancelled.
“In the city, only 85 auto stands are authorised. But there are several unauthorised stands. After thorough assessment, measures will be initiated to retain some stands,” officials said.
“Autos which do not have city permits will be allowed to enter the city with the passengers they bring and leave the city with the same passengers. They will not be allowed to take passengers from the city,” the RTO said, adding that permits will be issued only after strict scrutiny.