Auto numbers down by about 29,000

With financiers confiscating vehicles for EMI default, Bengaluru has about 20% fewer autos than it did before the pandemic broke out

Many auto drivers have taken to painting and vegetable vending. DH Photo by Janardhan B K

Bengaluru has fewer autos on the roads today than it did in March 2020, when the pandemic broke out.

C Sampath, general secretary, Adarsha Auto and Taxi Drivers Union, says 29,000 of 1.45 lakh autos in the city have gone off the road. “About 15 to 20% of all autos have been confiscated because the owners were not able to pay their EMIs,” he says. An auto costs around Rs 2.15 lakh, and monthly instalments range from Rs 6,500 to 9,000.

During the first lockdown, 3.4 lakh of 7.75 lakh auto and cab drivers in Karnataka got Rs 5,000 from the government as one-time relief. “When the second wave came, 2.8 lakh drivers got Rs 3,000 each,” he says. But that was barely enough for them to continue in the business.

Bengaluru’s autos are driven by 20–80-year-olds, and for many months, they couldn’t even earn Rs 300 a day. Many drivers have switched professions, and become cloth and vegetable vendors. Some have taken up painting, Sampath says.

Many auto drivers are still struggling to pay their instalments, despite business picking up. “I have been driving an auto for 32 years and have never faced such a difficult time,” says driver Lokesh G, who lives in Kammanahalli. He pays Rs 7,000 as EMI.

Abdul Rasheed, a resident of RT Nagar, has three instalments pending, and is putting in extra hours to pay off his debts. Earlier, he used to work from 10 am to 11 pm, but he now leaves home at 6 am. “I earn about Rs 800 a day,” he says.

‘Fewer autos on apps’

Many Bengalureans say they are finding it difficult to get autos on ride-hailing apps such as Ola and Uber. The rain is adding to their woes as the fares spike and the apps take longer to connect them to drivers.

Careful drivers

Chief traffic warden B Suresh Kumar says auto drivers are more careful now. “They earn meagre amounts and they want to avoid paying fines,” he says.

Fare enough?

Some auto drivers are citing the increase in fuel prices and asking for an increase in the minimum fare from Rs 25 to Rs 30, and the fare per km from Rs 13 to Rs 15.