HYDERABAD: Cab drivers working with Ola and Uber, affected by the fuel price hike, staged a protest on Thursday demanding that the aggregator platforms increase the minimum fare price to Rs 22/km.
The Telangana State Taxi and Drivers JAC members argued that they were paying higher prices for fuel even as their earnings remained the same. Diesel rates in the city are now Rs 87.20/litre, up by Rs 6.40 in the last 11 days.
The JAC chairman, Shaik Salauddin said, “We need a base fare of Rs 150 from cab aggregators Ola, Uber. The per kilometre fare must be increased to Rs 17-22 to improve the income of drivers after the recent fuel hike.”
Taxi and auto drivers say Uber currently charges a commission of 30-35 per cent per ride. Initially, it used to be zero, then they charged 5 per cent, which rose to 10 per cent and finally 30-35 per cent.
Salauddin further stressed that the fare hike must be implemented immediately as several drivers were unable to pay their EMIs because of the acute financial crisis induced by COVID-19.
Some of the other demands of the drivers include, reduction of dry runs for customer pick-up and that the pickup should be within 3 km of the driver’s location. Aggregator platforms should pay for the additional distance travelled by the drivers for pick-up.