The protests in the city left scores of fliers stranded at both international and domestic airports yesterday, as autos and taxis refused to ply to most areas
Protesters at Ramabai Nagar in Ghatkopar out on the streets on Wednesday. Pic/Suresh Karkera
The protests in the city left scores of fliers stranded at both international and domestic airports yesterday, as autos and taxis refused to ply to most areas.
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Ayesha, 26, was not able to go home to Khar: "Most who got cabs were headed towards areas that were not blocked, but cabs and rickshaws were not heading to Vashi, Sion, Powai and others. People who needed to go to these areas were staying put at the airport. Authorities had even put up plastic chairs inside."
She finally found a kaali-peeli cab that agreed to take her to her friend’s house in Andheri, but it came at a price. "He charged me Rs 1,000," she said.
While authorities made alternative arrangements, most passengers were unable to find a ride home. Pic/Rane Ashish
Khushboo Punjabi, whose family members were stranded at T2, said, "My father-in-law and brother-in-law had arrived from Delhi, but they were not let out of the airport as authorities had instructed all passengers not to exit the premises."
Cab aggregators were faced with difficulties too. "We have been facing problems since 8 am today," said Nahim Solkar, the Uber representative handling the counter at the domestic airport, adding, "In total, we have had around 25 cancellations since morning." His counterpart at the Ola counter said: "We have had around 15 cancellations so far. We have been facing a shortage of drivers since last [Tuesday] night itself, and have currently stopped taking bookings here."
At the cool cab stand, drivers flatly refused to go to most areas. "We can go to small distances, but others roads have been blocked," said Saleemudin Qureshi, a cool cab driver.
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