After commuters in the city were held to ransom last Monday by the auto rickshaw strike, the same threat looms large over this Monday. Although the official stance is that there will be no strike, union leaders refuse to take responsibility for individual drivers who may decide not to ply.

After a meeting of auto unions to discuss various issues yesterday, K Narayan, union leader of Central Indian Trade Union of Rickshaws, said, "We have decided to ply on Monday from Andheri to Goregaon. We were upset with the RTO's crackdown last week. But matters have been sorted out." He added, "But some rickshaw drivers in the central suburbs claim to have been beaten up by thugs over Thursday and Friday for plying with meters that were not rigged. And they may want to strike."

As such, many union leaders are predicting the possibility of another flash strike today, with drivers protesting against the thugs who have been mauling up.

Speaking of a fare hike, he added, "At the meeting held on Sunday, we discussed increasing fares across the country, including Mumbai. But that proposal will be put before the RTO soon."

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