App cabs strike in Kolkata, commuters face inconvenience

Kolkata: Commuters were inconvenienced on Thursday as around 7,000 app cabs and a few thousand app bikes went off city roads in the morning to press for their demand of hiking fares by the aggregators concerned.

The 12-hour shutdown called by CITU-affiliated Kolkata Ola Uber App Cab Operators and Drivers Union affected a section of commuters, who got used to this mode of public transport in the past few years.

"We demand fixing of cab fares annually as per the mandate of the Aggregate Law, making it rational and practicable and raising the percentage share for app cabs by the aggregators. We also demand fixing Rs 25 per km for non-AC cabs, Rs 30 per km for AC cabs and Rs 12 a km for app bikes,” a union spokesperson said.

An estimated 7,000 app cabs and thousands of app bikes functioning in the city did not hit the roads for 12 hours in support of the demand, he claimed.

"We also demand that only app bikes having commercial registration plates be allowed by the aggregators and the transport department play a pro-active role in that,” the union leader said.

He said that if necessary, the authorities should extend the March 31 deadline by a month for app bikes to get commercial registration to ensure transparency," he said.

"We demand an end to the harassment faced by the app bike taxis when they approach the transport department for commercial registration and end of harassment to app cab drivers by police and traffic department at airports, rail stations and on the street," he said.

The union also demanded sufficient CNG at designated pumps for CNG vehicles and the installation of more CNG stations.

General Secretary of AITUC-affiliated West Bengal Taxi Operators' Coordination Committee, Nawalkishore Srivastava said, "We have extended moral support to the strike."

However, commuters alleged that the non-app taxis and luxury taxis demanded hefty fares during peak office hours.

A transport department official said of the around 25,000 app-based cabs in the city and neighbourhood only around 15-20 per cent of them were off the roads and the services were not affected.

"We have the information that no other app cab drivers' union joined the strike," he said.

"Police and traffic department personnel were also present at different important thoroughfares to stop enforcement of the strike," the official said.

The union has threatened an indefinite strike after a month if the demands are not met immediately.