Kolkata: Traffic guards are requisitioning smaller cabs — comprising app and those used to ferry students — from April 19 in batches. In total, around 3,500 school vehicles and another 6,000 cabs have been requisitioned over the second half of April.According to transporters, this will affect the overall transport system till the end of April, with buses going off the road for election duty and autos facing a severe fuel crisis.The requisition of these vehicles began almost more than 45 days ago. “We have already requisitioned the vehicles. Now that the DEOs have launched the app, we are feeding our requisition data and calling up the car owners and setting them the dates on which they need to report. With elections in just two phases, the requirement is abnormally high,” explained an officer. Cops said the use of the Sugam app has made the process error-free, with data widely available to all.“Our cars are being taken by both police and the RTO. Cops are asking them from April 19 and the cars will be released by April 25. Force commandants will alone use around 450 such vehicles. Another 1,000 have already been requisitioned for other purposes. Around 150 are presently being used in Kolkata and around. For the second phase, beginning April 25, around 3,000 app cabs will be used,” said Indranil Banerjee, the convener for West Bengal Online Cab Operators’ Guild. Arupam Dutta from the Poolcar Owners’ Welfare Association said around 3,500 of their vehicles have been requisitioned, mostly by cops. In addition to the requisitioned 3,500 pool car vehicles, another 150-odd vehicles have already been requisitioned from the school sector, claimed sources, adding most schools would reopen by April 13. “My pool car driver has asked me that services will be unavailable between Aril 27 and 31. I am already making alternative plans,” said Sangita Banerjee, a resident of Jodhpur Park.Meanwhile, cops claimed they are coming across cars with stickers of ‘booked’ pasted on them. However, not all of them have been requisitioned legally. In several cases, fake ‘EC papers’ have been used.
