No more 'NO's'

We have all faced it sometime or the other. Stop a cabbie but the moment you say your destination, he accelerates and drives off. After years of this tiresome charade, Mumbai’s transport department is finally getting ready to put an end to this by building a website where users can lodge a complaint against taxi and auto drivers who refuse fares.

This new system will also allow consumers to check whether the complaint has been dealt with or not. Till now, there has been a toll free number 1800-22-0110 to fill a complaint but an online tool will definitely be more effective than a phone number. Mumbai police has also started a free SMS service for ensuring safety of women traveling alone. Under a ‘Travel Safe When Alone’ initiative, women can message the registration number of the vehicle they are traveling in, to a MTNL helpline number 9969777888.

With the rise in crime in the past few years, these initiatives, better late than never will come a long way in making the citizens of Mumbai feel safe, protected and secure.  But as usual, the big question is will it ever work? Surely the website would be inundated with messages but will the authorities really bother to address each and every one of them? When you verbally and directly tell a cab or auto driver that you will complain to the police, he almost always says with gumption, “ Ok, go to the police station; they can do nothing!” So cannot help but wonder how this will change anything on the ground.