Sarnaik further said the department has been receiving complaints of misuse of permits to ply. “There have been reports of many members of a single family and even illegal Bangladeshi nationals owning such permits. We will issue proper rules and regulations to obtain permission, and the whole process will be streamlined. RTOs have been informed. It will result in better coordination and also control congestion on the roads,” the minister said. At present, as per the Vahan portal of the transport ministry, there are around 10 lakh registered autorickshaws in Maharashtra — 1.4 lakh under the Pune RTO and 50,500 under the Pimpri Chinchwad RTO. “The existing system allows anyone with an autorickshaw to apply for a permit. The RTO makes necessary verifications and provides the same. Now, the RTO will not issue the permits to anyone buying an autorickshaw — preventing them from operating legally. In 2017, the govt had opened the permit system to increase employment opportunities, but there is a problem of plenty currently. We have been awaiting the change in rules for long and the step is welcome,” said Nitin Pawar, president of Rickshaw Panchayat. Too many autorickshaws lead to traffic congestion. Instances of ride refusals and bad behaviour have also been on the rise, said experts. “Most auto drivers don’t get a proper income because of the presence of too many vehicles. Hence, they focus on longer rides and tend to refuse short distances. On an average, a majority of autorickshaw drivers do not get more than two to three trips a day. Topped with high CNG prices, there is too much pressure on them to make money. We are happy with the decision,” said Keshav Kshirsagar, president of Baghtoy Rickshawaala. Commuters have, however, questioned how the govt decision will help. “The number of autorickshaws won’t come down. With close to 2 lakh autorickshaws, the so-called pressure is already playing out and commuters are bearing the brunt. Auto drivers have introduced illegal systems to fool passengers and fleece them. The RTO authorities don’t act against the erring drivers. I don’t think much will change,” said Rajesh Pradhan, a Kothrud resident and daily commuter.
