Kothagudem auto driver turns his vehicle into entertainment lounge to attract passengers
Songa Rajinikanth is also a good samaritan as he offers free rides to pregnant women in his vehicle, but only on the routes he travels irrespective of the travel distance
Kothagudem: As the auto rickshaw drivers across the State are under severe financial distress due to loss of passenger patronage caused by free travel in TGRTC buses, an auto rickshaw driver in Kothagudem district has come up with an innovative idea to deal with the situation.
The auto rickshaw driver, Songa Rajinikanth, of Peraigudem in Aswaraopet mandal transformed his vehicle into a mini entertainment lounge to attract passengers and thus to boost his income. He operates his seven-seater vehicle transporting passengers to different parts in the mandal as well the district.
After the Congress government introduced the Mahalakshmi scheme offering free rides in RTC buses to women like all other auto rickshaw drivers in the State he also suffered a dent in his income as passengers preferred RTC buses.
Instead of losing sleep over the issue, he thought it over on how to attract passengers. Then he decided to equip his vehicle with a music system linked with a nine inch LED display connected to mobile phone through wi-fi, four electric fans, which could only be found in luxury vehicles, in order to provide entertainment to passengers.
Speaking to Telangana Today, Rajinikanth – named after famous actor Rajinikanth by his ‘Rajini’ loving father – said he spent around Rs 40, 000 in a phased manner to fit the vehicle with the paraphernalia sometime back.
He said that he has been receiving good patronage from passengers who are happy to travel in luxurious mode, though his fellow auto-rickshaw drivers are envious of him. Video songs are played on the system as per the request of the passengers.
Thirty three-year-old Rajinikanth, a father of two daughters, is also a good samaritan as he offers free rides to pregnant women in his vehicle, but only on the routes he travels irrespective of the travel distance. He bought his auto rickshaw three years ago, before which he was a truck driver.
He said that if he goes to Kothagudem and any pregnant woman also wants to go there, he takes her with him free of cost. The decision to offer free rides to pregnant women was taken after he witnessed a road accident in which a woman in her advanced pregnancy died while going on a motorbike; he noted adding that travelling in an auto rickshaw is safe for them to some extent.
Not just that, Rajinikanth offers free rides to his village people when they travel to Aswaraopet. “We often spend a lot of money on futile things, losing a little money for a good cause is not a big deal” he added.
