KOLKATA: No pre-paid taxis are available outside Kolkata airport for an hour between 9.30pm and 10.30pm, thereby forcing people to wait for long before 15% surge in fare starts at night.
With no cabs in sight, a serpentine queue of tired and infuriated passengers, who are eager to return home, forms outside the terminal.
Many passengers have been complaining about the issue for the last few weeks. TOI checked the situation and found last week that the dip in the number of pre-paid cabs starts between 8.30pm and 9.30pm when many flights land in Kolkata airport. The number of these cabs starts rising after 10.30pm when the pre-paid fares are charged with 15% hike.
“I got stuck in traffic at Mumbai and missed my flight. I took a late-evening flight and reached Kolkata. I had been standing in a queue outside the Kolkata airport for nearly 45 minutes as there was no pre-paid cab,” said Ashis Chakraborty, a former state government employee, who was returning to his Salt Lake home from his son’s flat in Mumbai.
Avinash Singh had a similar experience while coming back home from a business meeting in Ranchi. He stood behind 16 others in a queue outside the airport. “This is for the third time in this month that I faced problem in getting a cab. The cabs refuse to ply till the night charges kick in. I think this is illegal and proper steps should be taken against the drivers,” said Singh, a Lake Gardens resident. Standing in the queue with two large trolley bags behind many others, Preeti Jain, a resident of Delhi, tried to book an app cab but the drivers continued refusing her, demanding some extra in cash.
“Not a single pre-paid taxi is available in the bay, no app cab accepts the booking. Many flyers like me have to suffer once they land in the city. In no other Metro city, I have found this problem,” said Jain, who had come to visit a relative in north Kolkata.
Jayanta Kumar Das, a taxi driver, who entered the bay after 10.30pm, confessed that he was delaying intentionally to make some extra money. “Driving at night is a concern as we are often stopped and questioned by cops in the nakas. Considering the amount we have to pay for diesel and other maintenance costs, I don’t find anything wrong on our part to delay and earn some extra money when the night surcharge starts,” said Das. Cops said they are aware of the problem but they are helpless as the drivers in empty taxis either don’t enter the airport premises before 10.30pm or make excuses of taking a break for dinner during this period. TOI found a couple of cops running after taxis and trying to convince the drivers to enter the bay.
“We try our best to address the situation and we direct every taxi entering the airport to the pre-paid bay,” said an officer.
