Bhubaneswar: All auto-rickshaws stayed off the road in the state Thursday morning following a 12-hour dawn-to-dusk bandh call given by the All Odisha Auto-Rickshaw Mahasangh.
Thousands of passengers were stranded in bus stands and railway stations in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Rourkela and Berhampur.
However, in Cuttack, the City Auto-rickshaw Association has made arrangements to bring patients from bus stands and railway stations free of cost.
The major demands of Mahasangh include revision of passenger fares and payment of annual insurance premium.
The organisation alleged that both the Centre and state governments have adopted policies to discourage plying of auto-rickshaws and taxis in cities.
With Bhubaneswar being declared a smart city, no auto-rickshaw and taxi would be allowed to ply on the main road, Mahasangh officials pointed out.
As a result, thousands of auto-rickshaw owners, drivers and their families would be deprived of their livelihoods.
Padman Samal, general secretary of Mahasangh, said the state government should prevail upon the Centre to revise fuel prices.
With a steep rise in oil prices, the auto-rickshaw owners are incurring heavy losses, he pointed out. “Besides, we also urge both the governments to withdraw additional taxes imposed on three-wheelers,” Samal added.
PNN
