RailEnquiry

Cracking the whip on auto rickshaws hindering the smooth movement of passengers near the Kodambakkam Railway Station, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) has booked six auto rickshaws. 

According to official sources, the drive was launched, following complaints from commuters about inconvenience, while exiting  the railway station premises. “Six three-wheelers have  been seized since Thursday and cases under three sections of the Railway Act like 144 (1) (Canvassing), 147 (Trespass and refusal to desist from trespass) and 159 (No Parking) have been booked. The auto rickshaw drivers have also been fined Rs 1,000 each by a Railway Court,” an official added.

Though the railway administration permits operation of auto rickshaws from the railway station premises, some three-wheelers, which don’t have the permit park their vehicles for picking up passengers, which is a violation, sources said. The permits must be renewed once  every six months by paying a sum of `1,800 to the railways.

“Interestingly, we even received complaints from fellow auto rickshaw drivers, as the three-wheelers without permits are eating into their business. This has led to a few authorised auto rickshaws failing to renew the permits,” an official claimed. Of the six auto rickshaws, two were booked for operating without renewing the permits from the railway authorities, the sources added.

The drive was carried out on the directions of Senior Divisional Security Commissioner, S R Gandhi, Chennai Division and under the supervision of Mambalam RPF Sub-Inspector, Maharajan. Asked whether the crackdown would be extended to other stations, officials said that the administration had permitted auto stands only at selected railway stations on the Beach-Tambaram section.