Pune: Autorickshaw fares are likely to go up in Pune from Aug 1, with the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) expected to approve a long-pending revision this week.Pune RTO officials and office-bearers of various autorickshaw unions said the proposal was to increase the minimum fare from the current Rs25 for the first 1.5 km to Rs30. The per-km fare thereafter would likely rise from Rs17 to Rs20. The RTA, headed by the Pune collector, will take a call soon.The hike will affect thousands of daily commuters, with many questioning whether upped fares would translate into better service and strict enforcement against overcharging.“Will drivers stop fleecing and overcharging? The other day, I booked an autorickshaw through an aggregator to go to the airport from Kondhwa. The driver wanted to know what was the fare reflecting on the app. He insisted on charging by meter and said I could cancel the ride otherwise. May we expect this behaviour to change after the fare hike?” said private firm employee Niraj Pranchal.Autorickshaw unions said the revision was unavoidable after the recent increase in CNG prices.Nitin Pawar of the Rickshaw Panchayat Union said the demand for a fare revision gained momentum after CNG prices increased mid-June. At present, CNG costs Rs95.75 per kg. “RTO officials have told us that the RTA meeting may happen this week. We expect the revised fares to come into effect from Aug 1. Meter recalibration will be carried out till then. We have also requested the RTO to publish a revised fare card until all meters are updated. The fares could have been much higher as per the Khatua Committee calculations. But we have limited our demand to Rs30 for the first 1.5 km and Rs20 for every subsequent km,” he said.President of the Azad Rickshaw Chalak Sanghatana Shafiq Patel said almost all unions were in support of the revision. “We have not sought a fare hike for nearly four years. It has become difficult for drivers to sustain themselves with CNG prices rising sharply. Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad have nearly two lakh autorickshaws even after the open permit system was discontinued. There are other issues too, but the fare revision is our primary demand,” he said.Commuters said fare disputes were routine, especially on aggregator platforms like Ola, Uber and Rapido. Drivers often demand whichever fare is higher — the app charge during surge pricing or the meter one when it exceeds the app estimate. “This has been happening for nearly one-and-half years and the RTO has not done much. Fuel prices and inflation have affected everyone. Commuters need an assurance that a fare hike will also bring better behaviour, fewer refusals and an end to overcharging,” said Wakad resident and bank employee Suverna Anand Jagtap.A Pune RTO official said the department’s WhatsApp helpline for complaints remained operational and enforcement drives against overcharging and refusal of rides were continuing. “The unions have raised several demands, but the immediate issue is the fare revision. The final decision will be taken at the RTA meeting. We urge commuters to report violations so that action can be taken,” the official said.
