With sixth increase in CNG prices this year, cabbies demand increase in base fare; gas price now stands at Rs 63.50/kg
The base fare for kaali-peelis was hiked from Rs 22 to Rs 25 from March 1 this year
Increase minimum cab fare to Rs 30 from the existing Rs 25, say kali-peeli taximen. Their demand has come on the heels of a fresh increase in CNG prices on Friday. “We had written to the government to help us out when prices of natural gas were raised the last time, but there has been no response. Now, there is yet another price rise. We wrote to Ashish Kumar Singh, additional chief secretary of Maharashtra, on Saturday for a revision of the minimum base fare for black-and-yellow taxis from Rs 25 to Rs 30,” Anthony L Quadros, general secretary of Mumbai Taximens Union, told mid-day. In his letter, he wrote, “Taxi drivers will have no option but to dump their taxis on the road instead of operating on the loss of Rs 120 daily.”
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Mahanagar Gas Limited on Friday issued a note stating that in order to meet the shortfall in domestic gas allocation, it is sourcing additional natural gas (imported RLNG) to cater to the increasing requirement of CNG and Domestic PNG segments. “On account of substantial increase in imported RLNG price, MGL’s input cost has also increased substantially. To partially offset the increase, MGL is constrained to increase the delivered price of CNG by Rs 2.00/kg and Domestic PNG by Rs 1.50/SCM in and around Mumbai, with effect from midnight of December 17, 2021,” the note said.
In February, when the price was increased for the first time, CNG cost Rs 49.40/kg. With the latest revision, the price currently stands at Rs 63.50/kg. The price hike will directly impact around 8 lakh citizens in the MMR, including taxi and auto drivers. Transport department officials said it would be difficult to comment on the issue immediately, but they will try and explore options on what could be done. The minimum fare of kaali-peeli cabs was revised from Rs 22 to Rs 25 from March 1 this year.
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