Thousands of taxi drivers are protesting in the Indian capital against fuel prices

New Delhi, Apr 18 (EFE) – Tens of thousands of taxi drivers have joined a strike in New Delhi on Monday in protest of rising war-torn fuel prices in Ukraine. Against the high commissions of companies like Uber.

“We have called for a strike due to rising fuel prices, which is affecting not only us (taxi drivers) but also the general public,” Sarvodara Drivers Association director Ravi Rathore told Efe.

Petrol price in New Delhi is currently Rs. 105.41 (approximately $ 1.38 / liter) was Rs.95.41 ($ 1.24) per liter when prices continued to rise in mid-March.

Diesel rose 11.5% to Rs. 96.67 / liter ($ 1.26), while natural gas (CNG) used by most taxi drivers in the Indian capital rose 21.3% to over Rs 71 per kg.

Although fuel prices have multiplied since then, tariffs have not been revised for the last twelve or thirteen years, ”Rathore lamented.

Taxis and three-wheelers, known as “rickshaws”, had lower-than-usual stockpiles on the streets and long waits for applications such as Uber or Indian Ola, raising the aftermath of the strike from 200,000 to 250,000 vehicles. The unions have announced they will go on an indefinite strike if the government does not accept the demands.

The war in Ukraine has pushed up energy and fuel prices, to $ 111.67 a barrel of Brent oil in mid-April.

But the taxi unions are not happy with Uber and its Indian company, Ola, which, according to Rathore, “exploit poor drivers” and “do not even cover the most basic” at the lowest possible cost per kilometer.

“Companies pocket up to 40% (on every trip) of commissions, which is a huge exploitation that needs to end,” he said. EFE

ssk-daa / hbc / ah

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