Mangalore, July 12: Over four hundred city based auto-rickshaw drivers staged a demonstration in front of Deputy Commissioner's office here on Friday, protesting against the entry of auto-rickshaws with rural permits into the city which has been affecting their livelihood.
Addressing the protesters, president of Dakshina Kannada Auto-rickshaw Drivers Association Vishnumoorthi Bhat said that with several auto-rickshaws with rural permits illegally operating in the city limits, the already-existing auto-rickshaws with city permits were hugely affected.
Two zones were formed in the 2005 with the intention of limiting auto-rickshaws from entering other zones. The auto-rickshaws that went granted around 5,800 permits in city limits are the same ones that function in the city now. There is a system with rules and regulations for the functioning of auto-rickshaws. When there are already enough auto-rickshaw drivers here to cater to the people, there is no need for several more to operate in the city, he said, demanding the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) to pass rules restricting auto-rickshaws with rural permits to operate in the city.
He said that Minister for Health and Family Welfare U T Khader had issued a directive to the Regional Transport Officer last week to allow rural auto-rickshaws from Ullal to enter Mangalore city limits within a short period. The rural auto-rickshaws cannot be allowed to operate here, and the RTA has the authority to make its decisions on its own, he said, criticising the minister's decision.
HMS-affiliated auto-rickshaw drivers' and owners' association president Ashok Kumar Shetty said that auto-rickshaw drivers were not able to make both ends meet even if they worked for the entire day. With about 7,000 auto-rickshaws already operating in the city, what will happen if hundreds more begin to run here? It is a sad situation, he said, stressing that the association would not take back their demands.
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