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Majority of e-rickshaw drivers without driving licence in Birgunj
A majority of e-rickshaw and auto-rickshaw drivers in Birgunj Metropolitan City have been operating their vehicles without a driving licence.Shankar Acharya
A majority of e-rickshaw and auto-rickshaw drivers in Birgunj Metropolitan City have been operating their vehicles without a driving licence.
Around 3,000 e-rickshaws and auto-rickshaws ply the roads of the metropolis. Of them, only 150 drivers have obtained their driving licence. Raj Kumar Singh, chief of the District Traffic Police Office, said they have requested the Transport Management Office, Narayani, to stop the registration of e-rickshaw and auto-rickshaw after the number of vehicles plying the city roads increased.
“Though the Transport Management Office has asked the drivers to register their forms and get their licence, only six drivers have attended the exam,” Singh said. “The Traffic Office alone cannot monitor all the e-rickshaws and auto-rickshaws in the city. The Metropolitan City Office and the Transport Management Office should also coordinate to manage all the e-rickshaws and auto-rickshaws.”
According to traffic officers, auto-rickshaw drivers stop their vehicles haphazardly on the roads and create chaos and traffic jams.
Currently, most of the e-rickshaws and auto-rickshaws are found carry passengers well beyond their capacity. Though there are six e-rickshaw drivers’ associations in Birgunj Metropolis, they have not done anything to solve the problem.
Amjad Ansari, chairman of Nepal E-rickshaw Operator Pvt. Ltd, said most of the drivers of e-rickshaws are illiterate.
“Illiterate drivers cannot pass the driving licence exam,” said Ansari, adding that they will be monitoring all drivers in the city.