Bengaluru: The indefinite hunger strike by the Uber and Ola cab drivers entered second day on Thursday. With both state and central governments declining to intervene, the protest is expected to continue for few more days.
According to the agitating drivers, around 30 cab drivers belonging to both Uber and Ola are on fast.
Kiran Gowda, one of the union leaders, told Deccan Chronicle that they will continue their fast till they get justice. "We started the protest 10 days ago. But till now neither cab aggregators nor transport department officials have approached us,” he alleged. Around thousands of cab drivers attended the protest on Thursday at Freedom Park.
Several drivers told this newspaper that though they were out of work for the past 15 days and banks may soon seize their vehicles, none of the government departments have come forward to end the deadlock. "Everyone is extending support from the outside. But no one has come to solve our problem," remarked Sudhakar Rao, a driver.
Aggregators levying surcharge
State transport department sources said they were monitoring the situation and alleged the cab aggregators were using this agitation for their gain. "We have received multiple complaints of surcharge. This issue will be taken seriously," said an officer.
Another senior officer from the transport department said aggregators are not coming forward for talks as the strike has had no impact on their revenue. They are now levying surcharge, he said.
50% cabs still plying
Even though agitating drivers are claiming that all the attached cabs are off the road, but cab users claimed they were able to book cabs on Wednesday and Thursday. "The waiting period was around 10 to 15 minutes, but cabs were available," said Purushottam Shetty, a techie from Electronics city. A staff of a cab aggregator company informed that even though strike is on, it has no impact services.
