Ahmedabad: The Ahmedabad Police have made fare meter installation mandatory for all auto rickshaws in the city starting January 1. Any rickshaw driver found operating without a meter after this date will face a fine and further legal action.

G.S. Malik, Police Commissioner of Ahmedabad, said, “We have received several complaints that auto rickshaw drivers charge excessive fares without any system in place. From January 1, traffic police will levy fines on auto drivers who do not have meters installed in their vehicles. After the second offense and fine, the auto rickshaw’s permit will be canceled, and the driver will be detained after that. I appeal to all rickshaw drivers to install meters in their autos.”

“It is interesting to note that every year the RTO renews the auto rickshaw permits, and during this process, meters are installed to pass the inspection. However, drivers often remove these meters and do not use them. We have decided to strictly enforce this rule,” the top cop added.

As the deadline for meter installation approaches, three autorickshaw driver associations, namely the Jagrut Autorickshaw Drivers’ Union, Navyug Auto Driver Welfare Association (Ahmedabad), and Vadodara Shaher ane Jilla Rickshaw Chalak Union, have filed a petition in the Gujarat High Court challenging the decision to impose fines on autorickshaw drivers who fail to install flag meters. They argue that this requirement unfairly targets auto-rickshaw owners and allege a violation of Article 14 of the Constitution.

The petitioners have stated that all vehicles with permits, including two-wheelers, three-wheelers, taxis, maxi-cabs, buses, luxury, and heavy vehicles, are required to have separate meters for measuring distances. However, the selective enforcement of this law, with fines imposed exclusively on auto-rickshaw drivers, reflects discrimination. The unions further allege that companies such as Ola, Uber, and Rapido, which do not utilize these meters, face no similar penalties. DeshGujarat

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