LAHORE: Rickshaw drivers have disapproved the Transport Department’s decision to allow government officials to buy CNG rickshaws under the Green Fund scheme, fearing exploitation by policemen and government officials.
“Officials from various government departments would form groups and create monopolies, like the pathans who own a large number of two-stroke rickshaws and exploit rickshaw drivers,” sources said.
Javed Sabir, chairman of the All Punjab Rickshaw Taxi Unions Federation (APRTUF), said the scheme was made for two-stroke rickshaw owners who couldn’t afford new CNG rickshaws and allowing 16-grade government officials to take advantage of the Rs 1 billion fund formed for the poor rickshaw drivers was against their rights. He said police inspectors were in the 16th grade and if they were allowed to buy CNG rickshaws, they would monopolise the transport. He said a few policemen owned most of the intra-city vans and nobody could stop them from violating traffic rules.
The Punjab Transport Department has recently directed CNG rickshaw manufacturing companies to ensure quality after a three-member quality control committee, with one member each from the district government, the Transport Department and the Motor Vehicle Examination Department, and has rejected about 150 rickshaws. The department also told manufacturers to increase production to meet the 35000-rickshaw target by the end of 2007.
Rickshaw drivers said there were about 60,000 two-stroke rickshaws in the city therefore 35,000 four-stroke CNG rickshaws were not enough. “The slow production of CNG rickshaws would cause problems for commuters,” a rickshaw drivers’ union official said. He said there were only 200 CNG rickshaws in the city.
“The provincial Transport secretary, in a recent statement, has directed manufacturers to produce at least five rickshaws every day and there are four companies making four-stroke CNG rickshaws,” the official said, “which means it would take at least four years to manufacture 35,000 rickshaws.”
An Environment Department official said the department had received only 1500 applications for CNG rickshaws and there were about 225 CNG rickshaws in the city.
He said two of the four CNG rickshaw manufacturers made 15 rickshaws per day, while the other two produced 10 or 11 rickshaws per day, and that the secretary’s direction was about minimum production. He said government servants were allowed to buy CNG rickshaws for the schemed to succeed. Sources from the industry said that four companies would not be able to make 20 rickshaws a day if they ensure quality.
Punjab Transport Minister Rana Shamshad Ahmed Khan said the Green Punjab programme would achieve its target. He said permitting government servants to buy CNG rickshaws was not illegal and would help facilitate lower cadre officials. He said the government had made foolproof arrangements to deal with all possible problems.
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