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Travellers will have to pay up to 35 per cent more to travel in an auto in Delhi, according to the revised fare the state government announced on Tuesday.

“ The base fare has been raised from Rs 10 for the first kilometre to Rs 19 for the first two, while for every subsequent kilometer travellers will have to pay Rs 6.50 as against the current fare of Rs 4.50,” transport minister Arvinder Singh Lovely said.

The black- and- yellow colored taxis that currently charge Rs 15 for the first kilometre and Rs 8.50 for every subsequent kilometre will now take Rs 20 for the first kilometre and Rs 11 for every subsequent kilometre, Lovely added.

The new fares will be enforced from Thursday, a transport official said.

Fares of radio taxis that charge Rs 15 per kilometre and bus fares remain unchanged.

Lovely said now that the fares had been increased, transport officials will go hard on auto drivers who don’t travel by meter, refuse to take passengers or overcharge.

“ We are setting up a call centre where travellers can complain about errant drivers. The operating permits of those found to be flouting rules will be cancelled,” he said.

According to transport officials, the government has made it mandatory for auto drivers to install global positioning systems (GPS) in their vehicles as a monitoring mechanism.

Lovely said that the government had earlier decided to raise the existing fare of Rs 4.50 for every kilometre after the first to just Rs 6, but eventually raised it to Rs 6.50 to factor in the cost of installing and maintaining GPS devices.

“ The systems will have to be installed within six months.

Those who fail to do so will lose their operating permits,” Lovely said.

The government plans to link the GPS devices to a transport call centre through a central server, making it easy to locate an auto and direct it to any traveller who calls for a vehicle, a transport official revealed.

Auto drivers, however, are unwilling to foot the bill for the GPS device that costs Rs 15,000 and requires Rs 1,500 every month for maintenance.

Rajendra Soni of the Delhi Autorickshaw Sangh said: “ We will install the device if it helps commuters but the government should finance it.” The good news for commuters is that they will soon also have the option of travelling in taxis at almost the same fare as that of autos.

Lovely said a flat rate of Rs 10 per km had been fixed for a new taxi service that will be run by private as well as individual operators.

He added that only vehicles having engine power in the range of 700 cc to 1,000 cc will be allowed for the service.

“Vehicles in this range include Maruti Omni, Alto and Wagon R. The process of issuing licences for the service has already begun. We want to launch it in five to six months,” Lovely said.