More than 15 thousand auto rickshaw and e-rickshaw drivers of Dhanbad are facing one of the most difficult times with the state-wide lockdown during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Around 90% of auto rickshaw drivers have already stopped operations due to lack of passengers and increased overhead expenses, including high fuel and maintenance cost. The passengers are unwilling to pay the increased fare fixed for the lockdown period.

Decrease in income of common people has also contributed to less number of passengers for rickshaw drivers. On an average they would run their vehicles with 10 passengers, the number has dipped to around two in this period.

A delegation of drivers met the president of Jharkhand Pradesh Diesel Chalak Mahsangh, Chhotan Singh, demanding an ex gratia amount of Rs 5000 for all auto rickshaw drivers on the line of the Delhi Government.

Vickey Chawla, an autorickshaw driver said, “The situation is quite different from the lockdown of the first wave of pandemic when auto rickshaws were not allowed to ply for three months but witnessed sufficient passengers when allowed to ply.”

“As the second wave is more severe and death rate is more compared with last year, people themselves are scared of venturing outside and especially travelling in public vehicles despite no bar on public transport,” said Chawla.

He said the decrease in passengers travelling by train has also led to a dip in their income as stations are a source of the majority of their daily passengers.

“The income of such drivers having their autorickshaw is around Rs 1000 per day during the normal days while others also used to earn around Rs 500 per day but now the income has reduced to Rs 150 to Rs 200 per day thus it is very difficult to sustain life with such meagre money and also risking our own life” said Chawla.

“With no income since the last over 18 days, it is very difficult to manage the expense of five persons including me, my wife and three children,” said Balkmund Sah, another autorickshaw driver of Hirapur.

Chhotan Singh said, “More than 50% of around 15,000 auto rickshaw drivers of the district are deprived of ration cards and last year we managed the food grains from the district administration as well as some voluntary organisations and we will again meet Sub Divisional Officer of Dhanbad seeking some help for auto rickshaw drivers.”

“The condition of those having ration cards is not much better as rice, wheat and dal provided from the PDS are not the only requirement to sustain life as family members of the many auto rickshaw drivers are ailing and require money for treatment and procuring medicines,” said Singh.