Where to lodge complaints against taxi drivers?

Commuters get short shrift

The third hike in auto and taxi fare in a year has not only burdened citizens, but also frustrated them as drivers continue to refuse short fare. The state government is sitting on numerous complaints, making daily travel worse. Rajendra Aklekar highlights the problems of the transport department which has failed to come up with solutions to make Mumbaikars’ commute hassle-free

Rajesh Shah, 41, a resident of Dadar (East), was frantically trying to hail a taxi for more than half an hour near the Dadar flyover. He had to take his mother to a doctor in Mahim. Standing with his old and ailing mother, he stopped more than eight taxis but they refused. Some sped past while others gave excuses that they were going in the other direction. The traffic constable at the junction was of no help. The only advice he gave Shah was to get in a cab even if the driver refuses. Finally, a taxi driver obliged. Shah was not only late for the appointment, but had to struggle the same way on his way back. “I tried dialling for cabs, but they were not helpful,” said a frustrated Shah. Shah represents the average Mumbaikar, who does not have a redress mechanism. There are helplines and e-mail IDs to file a complaint but no solution to the problem. Maharashtra RTO, a failure Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan heads the transport department but seems to have failed miserably in solving the persistent problem. “The transport department has been listening to the grievances of auto and taxi unions and giving them fare hikes. But, it has not come up with a foolproof mechanism to help citizens,” says Ajay Deshmukh, a commuter. On October 5, the state government permitted hikes in autorickshaw and taxi fares — the third time in a year — to preempt a strike threatened by 55,000 taximen in the city. “The explanation for fare hike does not hold water because all cabs and autos in Mumbai run on CNG, whose price has been more or less steady,” says Vandana Shirsat, a government employee, whose daily ride to the station in share-a-cab has become costlier. The government said the hike has been fixed in accordance with a state government-approved formula. Weak citizen representation? A senior transport department official says the chief minister should be serious about complaints and fill up vacancies in the department. “The government has been prompt in solving the grievances of automen and cabbies but why is it ignoring the commuters’ grievances? Every time the issue comes up, officials cite the same reason that the Regional Transport Office (RTO) and the enforcement department are understaffed,” he said. He cited the lack of a strong commuters’ representative. “The same old consumer organisations have been representing the citizens. There is a need for more aggression and perspective,” says the senior transport department official. The real problem There are many like Shah who feel helpless and frustrated as there is no immediate redress mechanism. “You are expected to face the inconvenience, go home and then mail or e-mail your complaint. You end up documenting the complaint, without hoping for a solution,” Shah says. Citizens cannot expect the traffic police to help them as they too are facing staff shortage. There are only 2,696 policemen — including 153 officers — to man 20 lakh vehicles in Mumbai. This alarming statistics has been ignored and could be the major reason for lawlessness and rising number of accidents. “No wonder, complaints against cab and auto refusing fare get less priority as there are not enough people to manage the traffic,” says Deshmukh. Sources said the proposal to increase the strength of the traffic police is with the home department, which is yet to act on it. More issues Not only staff crunch, but a lack of basic infrastructure has hit the Regional Transport Offices’ (RTOs) work. The RTO has three offices in Mumbai — for south and central Mumbai, for eastern and north eastern suburbs and the third for the western suburbs. The offices are either in a rented place, open barrack (Andheri RTO) or an old British horse stable (the Tardeo RTO). The three RTOs that register thousands of vehicles every year, issue licences, monitor the city’s transport system and get revenue of hundreds of crores are housed in dilapidated structures. When the department’s computerisation began a few years ago, the National Informatics Centre, the government’s IT wing, deemed the Tardeo structure unfit. The Mumbai Central office, that registers MH01 vehicles, is housed in a long row of sheds. The Andheri office, which registers MH02 numbers in the western and north western suburbs, operates from a dilapidated structure. A driving test track and a posh building promised a few years ago are stuck in a scam. The Wadala office, that looks after the eastern and north eastern suburbs and registers numbers MH03, has similar problems. ‘’All three offices are in a shambles. They have become a dumping ground for scrapped vehicles and gadgets,’’ says an RTO inspector on condition of anonymity. The 2012 statistics reveal that Mumbai has around 20 lakh vehicles registered from the ‘three dump yards of scrap’. Mumbai’s fourth RTO, MH-47, is only on paper despite being formally announced and declared in the official state statistics. The Borivli RTO office has been unable to start operations due to staff crunch and space. The solution Consumer activist and member of Citizen Transport Committee Jitendra Gupta says they should move the court over the problems and forward them to the Centre, although it seldom responds. “Citizens can start registering their complaints with the consumer grievance cell and the Union transport ministry,” says Gupta. Activist Nitin Joshi too suggests taking the grievances to the Centre. “The Centre will at least know that there is something wrong with the Maharashtra transport department. Courts are another option. But it is high time citizens took up their own battle,” says Joshi. Until the government comes up with a solution, commuters like Shah will keep suffering. “It is a sad situation. Even after the fare hike, cabbies and automen cheat commuters and the officials cannot tackle it. We will have to fight it ourselves,” said Shah.