More help

Not many noticed the teenager in uniform, satchel on back, looking tense and worried as she hailed auto after auto, on the main road in Koramangala. None agreed to ferry her to school. It was getting late, and she had an exam to write. 

After checking with about six autos, Roopa (name changed) panicked and collapsed. Luckily, a passer-by came to her rescue and offered to drop her to school. 

Eyewitness Capt S Ramakrishnan said: “At 9 am on Wednesday, I was waiting near Maharaja restaurant. I saw this schoolgirl checking with one auto after another. All refused. After a few minutes, she collapsed. When she regained consciousness, she said she was getting late for an exam. Luckily, a lady offered to drop her to school.” 

Transport commissioner Bhaskar Rao said auto permit will be cancelled if the driver refuses to ferry passengers. Bangalore’s autodrivers revel in turning away passengers, and after a series of refusals, Roopa, a school girl, fainted on the busy Koramangala road on Wednesday morning. 
  
When asked, president of Adarsha Auto and Taxi Drivers’ Union M Manjunath admitted that around 25% of auto drivers flatly refuse to ferry passengers. “One of the reasons could be that they may not have proper documents and are afraid to go to certain parts of the city,” he said.
   
Transport commissioner Bhaskar Rao sought help from the public. “As there are 85,000 autos in Bangalore, it’s difficult to take action against the drivers if proper details are not provided. We request people to take note of the auto numbers and send them to us,” he said. 

WHERE TO COMPLAIN
Phone: 22254900 
e-mail id: transcom@nic.in 
Address: Transport Commissioner’s Office, Gate 1, 5th floor, M S Building, Dr Ambedkar Road, Bangalore

Source - Time of India, Bangalore Edition, 18th March, 2010.

I just hope this not one of those many helpline numbers that are either never answered or people never bother to call. But I have decided I want to be more positive about this.