Pune: Heavy rain wreaks havoc; auto, cab fares to airport, railway station soar

With Pune recording an intense spell of rains late on Monday evening, it was a harrowing experience for travellers and commuters alike at the railway station and airport.

At Pune station, passengers had to wade through water as it gushed inside the platform and covered railway tracks as well.

Most other parts of central and south Pune faced waterlogging with Dagadusheth temple also bearing the brunt of the heavy downpour.

Also Read: No respite from waterlogging woes due to heavy rains in Pune

As soon as passengers came out of the station, they alleged cab drivers were fleecing them since Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited (PMPML) buses were not functional.

Shivajinagar weather station, representative of Pune, received 104mm rainfall between 10pm on Monday till 5:30am on Tuesday of which 81mm rainfall was reported within two hours between 9:30pm to 11:30pm on Monday night.

Cab aggregators were charging four times the usual amount.

Drivers were charging anywhere from ₹300 to ₹600 for a distance of 5 to 10 kilometres.

From Pune railway station to Shivajinagar, normal charges are usually less than ₹80 but passengers were charged ₹300 while for longer distances to Kothrud, the fare was around ₹500 to ₹600.

“I came to Karve Nagar in Kothrud from Pune station and the auto driver charged me ₹500. I had no choice but to accept it since it was raining and most autos refused to ply on that route,” said Nachiket Divate, a passenger.

Meanwhile, passengers at the Pune International Airport also faced similar experiences due to late arrival of flights. There was a huge rush for people wanting to get cabs.

“There is a huge queue outside of the airport of the cabs getting in, which amounts to waiting for them for more than 40 minutes,” said another flyer landed at Lohegaon airport.