Auto, taxi rides get costlier in Delhi

New Delhi, Jun 22: Transport Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely announced the hike in the auto fares in the capital at a press conference here on Tuesday, Jun 22.

The hike in the auto fares was prompted by the CNG price rise. The announcement on this regard comes just a day after the Delhi Cabinet on Monday, Jun 22 decided to raise the fare rates.

Justifying the move to hike auto fares, the Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had said that the rise in prices of natural gas forced the government to take this step.

The minimum fare for auto rickshaws will be increased from current Rs 10 for the first one km to Rs 19 for the first two km, the minister said, adding that the charge per km after the first two km will be Rs 6.50 as against the current rate of Rs 4.50, which is taken per km after the first one km.

The minimum fare for yellow and black taxis will go up from Rs 15 to Rs 20 for first one km while the rate will be Rs 11 instead of current Rs 8.50 for subsequent kilometre, the minister added.

The demand for hike in fares came from auto and taxi driver unions.

Meanwhile, taxi and auto rickshaw drivers in Mumbai decided to hold a strike on Tuesday, Jun 22 demanding a hike in fares while crippling India's financial capital.

OneIndia News