Not scared of penalty, auto drivers behave rudely; 38 booked
Not scared of penalty, auto drivers behave rudely; 38 booked NO WAY: A MiD DAY reporter asks a rickshaw driver to take her to her destination. The driver refused and fled. pic/nikhil ghorpade
On Day 5 of the MiD DAY and Radio One autorickshaw campaign in association with the traffic police and Regional Transport Office, MiD DAY reporters got 38 errant drivers booked in Camp.
The reporters stood in front of the SGS Mall on MG Road, which is a busy location with people constantly moving in or out of the mall.u00a0u00a0
Commuters noticed that the reporters were catching errant drivers. The reporters asked rickshaw drivers to ferry them to far off places like the University of Pune and Mohomadvadi and also to closer destinations like Pul Gate and East Street to check out their reactions.
Auto drivers were booked for refusing passengers, overcharging and even for rude behaviour. In the first hour itself, 13 were booked.
In the evening, 25 more offenders were booked. The reporters shifted location as the auto drivers were watching them suspiciously and there was a chance that they might say yes to take them to their destination. The drivers apparently came to know about the campaign in the area and became cautious in their replies to commuters.
Here's what we found
Reporters: Shree Lahiri and Sonia Rodrigues 
Place: SGS Mall (MG Road)
Time: 5 PM-6.15 PM
Offenders Booked: 13
An auto driver refused to take a commuter Jijo N Nair from M G Road to East Street as it is a short distance. A lady from Greenland Pia Klist and her little daughter got an auto to go to Mohomadvadi. Klist said, "The auto drivers always charge me extra." Klist has been staying in the city for two years, and she was fully aware of the overcharging problem.
Two students, Joshua and Blake Fernandes, said that an auto driver demanded a flat amount of Rs 20 for taking them from Marz-O-Rin to S G Mall instead of charging by meter and they quietly paid the amount.
The reporter stopped a driver who said, "You have to pay extra to go to Mohomadvadi or you get off at Hadapsar." Another driver demanded half return fare. One of the drivers spoke to the reporter rudely and said that he would charge an extra Rs 20 to go to the university. He even asked if the reporter wanted his licence number. Another driver said, "Aise bahut dekhe hain maine."
Vijay Sansi, who sells VCDs and CDs on the road in front of the mall, said, "Good job!" He disclosed that he has seen passengers facing problems with auto drivers.
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Reporters: Kranti Vibhute and Nikhil Ghorpade
Place: Baba Jaan Chowk and Sherbatwalla Chowk
Time: 6.30 PM-7.30 PM
Offenders Booked: 14
The auto drivers were asked if they would go to far off locations like Mohomadvadi. Eleven auto drivers refused to go. Two drivers demanded an extra fare of Rs 20 as they claimed that they don't get return fare from those far off locations. One of them even tried to bargain with the commuters and said, "If not Rs 20, then give at least Rs 10 extra."u00a0
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Reporter: Vivek Sabnis
Place: Landmark (Dr Ambedkar Road)
Time: 9.15 PM-9.45 PM
Offenders Booked: 7
There were eight autos standing outside Landmark. Five of them refused to go to Vijay theatre on Laxmi Road when the reporter asked all of them one by one.
A middle-aged couple that wanted to go to Rasta Peth also had a similar experience. The reason given by the drivers was that they wanted to go home which was obviously on the opposite side of the commuter's destination.
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Reporter: Vivek Sabnis
Place: Victory Cinema (East Street)
Time: 10.15 PM-10.40 PM
Offenders Booked: 4
This proved to be the most difficult spot for getting autos at late hour. An old man got fed up when he tried to stop the fourth rickshaw, as he wanted to go to Hadapsar. The reporter tried to intervene and help him by hailing a rickshaw but the rickshaw driver fled in his vehicle.
Another rickshaw driver who was standing on the road for almost 20 minutes refused fare. He said that he was already waiting for some passenger who was having dinner at a nearby hotel.
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