New fares but no new meters? Maharashtra government tries to control the chaos

Auto-rickshaw drivers wait to get their meters recalibrated at the RTO in Vikhroli. Pic/Ashish Raje

Fare unfair! As more and more autos and taxis begin charging as per new fares without recalibrating meters, leading to confusion among commuters, the Maharashtra transport department has said that it has stepped up recalibration efforts and made a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to streamline and expedite the process.

A senior transport department official said that there are two elements to it - one that auto and taxi drivers are finding it expensive to recalibrate the meters and the other is that meter calibrators have been demanding a hike in charges.

Following this, the transport department met stakeholders and laid down SOPs. An app called Trans ID Fare Master has been developed, based on which the recalibration of the new fare will happen. Log-in IDs and passwords have been provided to approved agencies and institutions for the bench test and road test of the meters.

During the process, the digital meter unit must be removed from the vehicle and given for a software update. Once the upgrade happens, the vehicle owner has to show the receipt and get it fitted at one of the centres. Once it is fitted, a road test of the vehicle happens to check the meter, the rates and the new fare structure. The process takes three to four days per auto and involves Rs 600 to Rs 700, plus a fee if an agent is involved. The app is expected to authenticate and expedite the process.

Vehicles whose registration number ends in ‘0' will line up in the first seven days, followed by vehicles ending with 1, 2 and onwards. This process will continue till May 9, after which the remaining vehicles can get their meters recalibrated. In MMR, there are 4.6 lakh autos and 60,000 taxis. Around 300 meter technicians have been deployed for the task.

Despite financial difficulties amid the pandemic, the Maharashtra government on February 25 hiked the base fares of taxis and autos in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) by Rs 3 from March 1. The deadline to recalibrate meters has been extended till May 31. The minimum fare for auto-rickshaws is now Rs 21, while the minimum fare for the black-and-yellow taxis is R25. The fare increment per kilometre has also been hiked by over Rs 2 for both.

700
Approx cost in rupees for recalibration of meters