Several calls made to helpline, SMS service yield no response from traffic department

If you are one of the several thousands fleeced by auto-drivers in the city, get ready for some more bad news.
The helpline number and SMS service that the Regional Transport Office (RTO) had installed for commuter complaints has logged only two complaints per day.

The reason, for this low number, as MiD DAY discovered, is that neither do officials pick up the calls at the helpline, nor are the SMSes registered or acknowledged by the service.

When MiD DAY contacted the department, Baba Shinde, member of Regional Transport Authority (RTA), he said, "Nine out of ten people don't know of the helpline and the SMS service."

However Shinde added that any complaints received are immediately acted upon.

No response
When MiD DAY decided to try the helpline and here's what we found. There is no way to register a complaint because officials at the helpline don't bother to answer calls and even the SMS service doesn't yield any result.

Charging more
This reporter took two autorickshaw rides in the Aundh area, keeping the distance under a kilometre. While the meter reading showed Rs 10, the driver insisted on charging a return fare, and we had to pay Rs 20.

Despite several calls and SMSes sent to the helpline number with details like the number of autorickshaws, no response was received.

RTO officials blamed the media for not popularising the helpline and refused to accept that the helpline wasn't working. "You must have called at lunchtime or non-working hours," said Pradeep Shinde, deputy commissioner, RTO.