JOIN USWho will authenticate their claim?
The auto driving licence display system requires the auto driver to display the details such as name, address, licence number and blood group. And this driver detail card must be hung in the auto, just behind the driver’s seat.
It was said that the commuter would have a complete knowledge of who he’s dealing with but today you’d find that either the writing on the card is not legible or the address printed on it is false.
There seems to be nobody to monitor this or catch the offenders?
The Bangalore Traffic Police blame the Transport Department and the latter say that they are helpless as there is no system in place. The authorities in the Regional Transport Office (RTO) say the auto drivers come to them only to renew their licence once every three years.
They claim that there is no provision to carry out a change of address within three years. Vijay Vikram, joint commissioner RTO pointed out that unless auto drivers come in person and note the change of address nothing can be done.
“It is impossible to check every auto in the City to make sure the address is correct. There has to be some initiative from their end as well,” he adds. The auto drivers have their own version to narrate. They say that even if they go to the RTO with the change of address, it is delayed and the auto drivers are forced to go through middlemen who demand bribe for the job to be done.
“We don’t go in for an address change before three years because we will have to pay a heavy bribe to the middlemen at the RTO. The authorities don’t entertain us directly.”
“Also one owner has more than one driver for his auto that’s why you find that even the photos don’t match,” says Ragavendra, an auto driver. Ramesh pitches in, “The basic system to change the address isn’t there. Then how can we be blamed,” he asks.
People have given up on auto drivers altogether. They feel the police must monitor auto drivers in a systematic way. Vivek, who runs his own business, says an active GPS personal monitoring tracking device with a code should be installed in every auto which is monitored by the traffic police.
“This has to be made compulsory so that the autos in town can be monitored at all times,” says Vivek.
Puttaraju, a civil engineer says that he’s noticed many a time that the photo in the
display card and the man driving the auto aren’t the same. “Nothing is being done to monitor this. The passengers are left in the lurch,” he wraps up.